Soul of a Hero
by Addiccus Phinch
Summary: Death is not the end it used to be. A man dies young, and is given an offer he cant refuse. He comes back, now entered into the cycle of undeath, and placed into a world that while not his own, he knows well. Knights will stand beside him, and against him. Heroes of legend will face against beasts of lore. Gods will seek to manipulate the piece on the board that doesn't belong.
1. Soul of a Lost Undead

Life is an interesting thing. You are born into the world, you get to sample of its pleasure and its horrors, and then you leave. I say leave instead of die, because that is how it turned out in my case. Now, I don't know if this is how it happens to everyone else, or anyone at all, but this is what happened to me.

The best part about getting hit by a train, is that you don't really feel it. You might hear its whistle, smell its smoke, taste the sparks on your tongue. You might even see its golden light frame you in shadow. But when it finally hits you? It feels like a breeze, a gust of wind. And then you feel light. Not in the photon sense, but you, yourself, you feel like a feather. And then everything gets dark.

And this is where I believe things began to change. Because instead of seeing the pearly gates, the fiery office door, or simple nonexistence, I saw a big golden eye.

Now golden is a bit generous, because it was more sickly yellow than anything. And calling it an eye too, could also be erroneous because it had no pupil per say. Just a big black spiral that descended from the eyes edge, to where the pupil should be. However, I knew it was an eye. I could feel it. Feel its gaze, staring at me. If I wasn't already dead I would have found this kind of unsettling. However at the point where I was, I didn't much care. Being dead really chills you out.

And then the eye spoke.

Now of course, the eye itself didn't speak. Just whatever the eye belonged to did. That would be ridiculous, a talking eye. It's not like I was in mordor or anything. And honestly the voice sounded nothing like Saurons constipated screeches. It sounded like the librarian from the library I loved as a child, my grandfather, and my social studies teacher, all rolled into one. It was kindly, soft, and deep. The kind of voice that would put both Morgan Freeman and Sean Connory to shame. The kind of voice that would read a child a bedtime story and have them asleep before they finished the title. The kind of voice you trusted implicitly.

It mesmerized me, which wasn't hard considering my faculties were dimmed anyway. And it spoke at length about things which I honestly can't remember. It's like a dream, where you remember what happened, how and why, but the actual words said always escape you.

It was an offer. The eye was giving me an offer to live again, Or something like that. It knew before I died, that there were things I wanted to do, needed to do. It would give me another chance to experience a kind of joy I was deprived of in my first go around. The eye said I could save people, be a hero. All that jazz.

And I said yes. Who wouldn't? People always spoke of an offer they couldn't refuse, and I always said that such a thing was bullshit. That there was always a catch, and the catch always tainted the worth of the deal.

I really fucking wish I had remembered that before I had agreed.

The moment I had given my assent, the situation began to change. The eye grew brighter, and its pupil began to swirl. I began to feel heavy again, feel alive but something was off. I looked at my arms to see not my own flesh, but dried and shriveled limbs. Like an old corpses. I would have screamed but I was too shocked to make a sound. I then felt a pain on the back of my left hand, and I turned it over to find what looked almost like a cigarette burn, if much bigger in size. A dark spot of flesh, surrounded by what seemed to be a burning ring of flame.

And then came the laughter. I looked up to the eye, and nearly pissed my undead self in fear. Below the glowing orbs, stretching as far as the eye could see, was a grin. A grin housing teeth of insane size and number. All ivory white, and sharp enough to impale the very train that killed me. The laugh was coming from the grin, which moved in time with the noise. The eye however, did not move an inch. Only in its pupil did it shift, as the pupil was swirling faster and faster and faster. I was caught up in staring at it, loosing my sense of everything else around me. Until the voice ceased its laughing and spoke the last words I would hear from it for a long, long time. And the only words from it, that I can remember clear as crystal.

"Your story begins, its time to wake up."

And, like it was a dream, I awoke from death. I had indeed returned from the undiscovered country, from which no weary traveler was supposed to be able. I lived again!...

...somewhat.

If you call life looking like an angry piece of beef jerky with arms and legs, locked in a shitty damp cell with little but the clothes on your back. You see, this is when I remembered my feelings on 'deals you can't refuse' and for the next, hour? day? who knows how long, you lose all sense of time in that place, I raged in futile anger. Anger at being tricked. Anger at my foolishness. Anger at my lack of fucking shoes.

To put it lightly, I was kinda angry.

I tried keeping a score of the days that went by in that cell, using the hole in my roof as reference. However I quickly lost track, and began counting the times any actual change occurred in my situation. That change being rain.

Being the undead abomination I was now, I didn't really feel much physically. My skill was tough and thick, And the dead don't care much about the cold. But the rain? Good god that rain felt glorious. Any time it began to drizzle, id stand underneath my skylight and lift my head and arms to the sky. Almost as in praise to it, as it blessed me with its gentle caress. It soothed the pains I didn't realize I still had, and dripped down my throat with a coolness that relaxed me.  
Not that I needed the water, but the act itself of drinking made me feel human again. And I sure as hell wasn't drinking that murky shit leaking into my cell. It would likely kill me. Again.

The best part about the rain, was that It helped me to forget that...mark on my hand. The burning one, that still had fire even after the brand. I didn't know how it was still burning, or why on earth the damned thing looked so familiar. And as long as I was in this damn cell though, with its rusted yet stupidly strong door, it didn't really matter.

Five rains had gone by, and I was waiting for a sixth when something different happened.

Different as in a fucking corpse fell through my window to the heavens, and hit the ground in front of my sitting figure with a loud thump. I didn't scream, I promise you. It was a shout. A manly yell signifying my surprise in a very manly way. Not the shrill scream that echoed throughout the prison. No, that had to be someone else.

My brain, slightly atrophied from undeath and utter boredom, took a moment to realize what was going on and asked a very important question. how did that corpse just fall into my cell? I looked up the ceiling to see a welcome sight. There, at the edge of the skylight balanced a knight in full armor. He was watching me, I could tell by the tilt of his helm. Knowing that I finally had noticed him, he gave a nod in my direction, and pointed to the corpse. That was the first human contact I had had in who knows how long, but before I could let him know of my jubilation he moved out of sight.

Thats when nostalgia, and a powerful feeling of incredulity hit me like the ground had hit the corpse. I quickly looked at my hand, and the name of that damn mark finally came to me, and finally did I realize why it was so familiar. I spoke then, first time since the last rain, and my voice was raspy from disuse. I spoke the name of that cursed brand, with a reverence that surprised myself.

"Darksign..."

...And then my decayed eyeballs nearly popped out of my head as I realized what exactly I just said.

"DARKSIGN?!"

There was no way. No goddamn way in heaven or hell did that damn eyeball send me to where I thought I was. The cell, the knight, the corpse...  
I rushed over to the corpse and flipped it over. There, hooked to what looked like the tattered remains of a belt was an old rusty key. I snatched it up with a quickness my dead bones had not seen in some time, and nearly leapt at the gate that sealed my cell. Quickly I found the keyhole, slammed the key in and turned with all my might.

Although to a passing observer, the resulting 'click' probably seemed anti-climactic and completely out-of-place to my dramatic motions. To me however, that click was as loud as a gunshot. If my heart still beat I was sure it would have been pounding. An elation came over me, that I now was free from the cell that had imprisoned me for who knows how long. It was followed by a strange sense of calm. The kind that is associated with familiarity, with doing something done before. Then came the surging rage and disbelief at the confirmation of my suspicion. Two words bounced around inside my skull. Two words that called to life the image of a place, of people, of hours of life spent in a world of make believe. Two words that I knew very well.

"Dark Souls."

The words came out of my mouth with a strange taste. The eyeball had brought me back to a world arguably worse than my own. A world that, while I knew it well, was fraught with danger and death. Madness and greed. And I was brought back as a fucking undead no less, meaning I also had the constant fear of hollowfication hanging like a sword above my head. To lose my humanity and become a stupid zombie that attacked anything that wasn't as corrupted as it, in hope of stealing for itself what it once lost.

But how did this even happen? This place wasn't even real, it was a story, a game played in ones spare time. How was it even possible. Then again, how possible was it to die and meet a glowing eye with big fucking teeth that brought you back to life?

In the distance I heard a loud slam, and it broke me from my thoughts. I was here, in this prison-no. In the goddamn Undead Asylum, and I needed to get out. I needed to get to the damn crow, and maybe find some answers in Lordran. And to do that, I had to get past the big ugly motherfucker at the door.

"Alright," I said to myself and maybe to the cell behind me,

"lets do this."

And then I stepped out of my cell and into the asylum hallway. Only sparing a small glance over my shoulder at the skylight. Hoping to see some hint of precipitation, perhaps as a farewell. With no such luck, I kept walking.

The hallway wasn't very long, and the hollows that lined its side were easily avoided. I knew they wouldn't be strong, but I didn't mess with them. I didn't know how my strength would fare against them. Plus I was weaponless, and didn't relish the thought of killing something with my bare hands. Even if they were technically undead. Massive thumps echoed from the room to my right, where the stray demon kept its angry pace. I spared it a look, and shuddered. In real life it was a truly terrifying creature, and I hurried forward. I didn't think the rusty iron bars and crumbling stone would keep it from tearing me a new asshole if I caught its attention. And thus, I really REALLY did not want to catch its attention.

I made my way through the hallway unmolested, and stepped into the semi-flooded room that followed. I ignored the hollow in the corner, even when its head lifted to face me and the sound of my footfalls. I felt its glowing red pits boring into my back in an unsettling fashion as I climbed the ladder off to the side.  
the climb wasn't long, but I was slightly fatigued from it which worried me greatly. I knew just sitting in that cell for days on end had an adverse effect on whatever muscles I had been given after being brought back, but I didn't know just how bad. If just climbing a ladder got me tired, how in the hell was I going to fight the asylum demon?

"One thing at a time." I reminded myself as I looked over the courtyard. The open roof led to a nice view of the cloudy sky, and shed light upon the entire area, which was very welcome after living in a generally dark cell. Across from me were the large doors that lead to the asylum demons choice room. And between me, and my biggest challenge in escape, was the one salvation in this dark world.

The metal spike was tilted slightly to the side, and was badly rusted. Below it were what seemed to be bones in various states of completion. Some were little more than shaped powder, others were in fragments. Only two seemed full and whole, one being what seemed like a femur, and the other being the a skull which stared at me from its place in the pile.

I moved by the unlit bonfire, and stared at it intently, trying to gleam a way of lighting it. I tried placing my hand over it, as my character had done hundreds of times when I played, but to no avail. The skull seemed to mock my effort with a toothy grin, and I shot it the finger. To my immense surprise, the bonfire came alive with a loud 'Whoosh!' of the fire like estus and I fell back, flat on my ass.

I had no idea what caused the conflagration, till my wide eyes fell upon my darksign. The hand in which it was upon was the one I used to give the skull the bird. Perhaps having the Darksign so close to the bonfire awakened it? I had no idea but I couldn't help but to smile at the false fire that emanated from the pile of bones. Such sites had always given me comfort when I was alive. And indeed, anyone who played the game like I had always felt a sense of relief upon seeing that unique creation. It signified both safety, and progress.

I didn't bother standing up, but simply scooted myself closer to the bonfire, and reached my hand to the estus. I watched in awe as it seemed to reach back, and then its began to flow over my fingers and up my arm. It was warm, and felt amorphous. Within moments it had embraced me fully, and then at once dissipated.

It felt absolutely amazing. Like the rain I loved so dearly, only better. It reached every part of my aching body and rejuvenated it, filling it with life and energy. I was still a walking piece of beef jerky, but now I was an energized walking piece of beef jerky. I felt alive again, even if I wasn't truly.

I jumped to my feet, and stared at the big doors that separated me from my foe. I sprinted to them and grabbed a hold of their handles. With a mighty shove, they slowly began to open. I kept pushing. the strain was evident on my face, as they were heavy ass doors, but I was hopped up on my first taste of estus and the doors didn't bar my was for long.

I was there, in the antechamber of the beast. A wide open area, ringed by columns and long since broken pottery. There was a similar door to the one I just overcame dead ahead, but I knew it wouldn't open without the key. To the left of that door, in the corner, was a much smaller door to which I knew I would have to run to once the Asylum demon reared its ugly head.

I cautiously stepped forward, my eyes lifted up to watch the roof where I knew the fat bastard was sure to come. By the time I reached the middle of the room, I knew he should have been there by then. For a brief, foolish moment I entertained the thought that perhaps he didn't exist. Maybe he fell off the edge, or was taking a nap, or-

-or, as the loud fucking crash that came FROM RIGHT BEHIND ME attested to, the Asylum Demon was on the other side of the roof, and had been watching me the whole time.

My first and proper reaction to the situation was to fall to the ground and pretend to be dead, hoping that the demon might assume I had a heart attack from its terrifying visage. Instead, I suppressed that urge and ran like hell to where the door was. Ran to my escape from greasy smeardom upon the brick flooring. Until I noticed that the gate which covered my exit, hadn't raised like it should have. Instead it remained slammed shut, iron bars preventing my escape.

I felt my blood run cold, and a pit formed in my stomach. Behind me came an angry roar that shook my bones, and a series of heavy stomps that rattled the floor. I heard whoosh of wind, and threw myself to the right in an attempt at a roll which ended up with me face down on the unforgiving stone. The area where I was just standing exploded with the slam of the demons hammer, and I scrambled to my feet.

Once I had gotten up, I booked it back the way I came, Ignoring the demon for the safety I hoped resided back in the tunnels. There was no way I could fight that thing, and no way IN HELL I could fight it bare handed. I was better off trying to escape, and finding a way around it.

Again I heard the 'Whoosh' that signified that the demon was swinging and I tried my earlier tactic again. Throwing myself to the right, I hoped to avoid the hammer that would make short work of me. However, the Asylum demon was much smarter than I, or the game, ever gave it credit for as it angled its attack just in case I tried to dodge again.

Pain. Blinding pain erupted from my side as I was hit like a baseball and went flying though the air before slamming HARD into a wall. I could hear the Asylum demon roar as if he just hit a grand slam. The buzzing in my ears was like the cheering of a crowd, and in delirium I started to hum a few bars of 'Take me out to the ballgame.'

I had gotten to the part about rooting for the home team, when the great shadow of the asylum demon fell over my prone form. I tried to lift my head, wanting to stare death in the face this time instead of having him surprise me, but I didn't have the strength. The shadow grew larger, and I imagined what it must have look like. A lone undead, laying upon the ground, bleeding out. A massive demon, standing above him and standing in is as impromptu executioner. Great hammer raised high in the air with grim finality.

This was it. I had died once and was about to die again. Would I rise from the bonfire, like my characters? Would my body stitch itself back together after some time? If I did come back again, would I even be sane? or would I be one of the thousands of hollows roaming this world, my second chance wasted.

I was getting really sick of all these damn questions, and that irritation was what finally gave me the strength to lift my head and gaze at the demon. My face trying to convey the expression that he needed to hurry the fuck up and do what he was going to do.

But the demon wasn't looking at me, he was looking off to the side. I followed his beady eyes to the sight of a familiar knight waving his arms and trying to make as much noise as possible. He was distracting the beast, why? Was he trying to save me?

The asylum demon glanced back at me and, determining that I wasn't going anywhere any time soon, turned his full attention to the knight who I think just insulted both the demons mother, his weight, and the size of his genitals. With another great roar, the beast jumped and flapped his pathetically tiny wings. Somehow they gave him enough of a boost to clear the wall and land on the roof.

By the time he had done so, the knight had already began to run in the opposite direction. Just before he disappeared out of my dimming sight, he turned and tossed something into the room which I laid. Then he was gone, angry ass demon charging behind him.

I followed the thing with the only part of my body it didn't hurt so much to move, my eyes, and I watched as it bounced a few times before rolling to a stop about fifteen feet away from me. It looked like a bottle of some sort. Greenish maybe, but with a glow that made me think of the bonfire I rested at previously.  
It clicked in my head what that was, and what exactly that knight had risked. Not just the ire of the demon, but his own life in more than one way. It was an Estus flask, the only container I knew of that could hold the pseudo flames that healed the injured undead and nourished them. Unless he had a spare, he would be unable to heal himself if he got injured. And they were, lore wise, supposed to be pretty rare.

And thus began the most painful fifteen feet of my life. As I began to move, it became apparent just exactly what parts of me were injured, and what was destroyed. All my ribs on one side were crushed, as was the shoulder blade on my right arm. My spine wasn't broken, thankfully, but had been banged so hard that every movement in my lower body sent pain shooting directly into my skull.

In the distance I could hear shouts, roars, and slams that could only be the Knights battle with the Demon. It wouldn't last forever, and while I hoped otherwise, I honestly doubted that the knight could beat the demon alone. He risked himself to save me, and I wasn't ready to die twice. I had to get to the flask. Gritting my surprisingly intact teeth, I tried to ignore the pain and using my good arm, began to pull myself in the direction of the flask.

It seemed to me like it took an eternity. Ever pull dragged the rest of my shattered form against rough and hard stone, causing me to gasp and whimper. After every single pull I had to take a moment to weather the agony. Twice I almost gave up, but then id begin to hear a train in the distance and it would spur me on.

The moment when I finally wrapped my fingers around that emerald flask might have been the happiest in my life. I was crying as I pulled it to me, and forced my body to roll over onto my back. I fumbled my hand around the skinny part of its neck, and lifted it above me. I could see amber fire within it, but it wasn't glowing as bright as It should. It wasn't full, and the thought hit me like a hammer. But maybe, just maybe there could be just enough to get me walking. If so, I could make it to the bonfire just outside, and heal.

I raised my eyes to the cloudy sky in a sort of silent prayer to whoever in this strange world might be listening, before opening my mouth and tilting the flask. The estus that had refused to dislodge itself during the flasks violent transition from the knight to me, flowed like water from the lip of the container and straight into my waiting gullet.

Drinking estus was definitely a different experience from feeling it directly from the bonfire. It was hot, but not to a burning extent. It filled your entire body with heat that spread directly from your core. Its consistency was like egg drop soup. Thick and viscous. And its taste wasn't actually a taste at all, It tasted like nothing. Not like water nothing, but actual nothing. I guess that since it wasn't actually matter, it didn't have a taste. Either way, it didn't stop me from swallowing every last drop of estus in that bottle.

There wasn't nearly enough to heal me fully, but somewhere some god must have been listening, because there was just enough to get me on my feet. Well, one foot anyway. I began to hobble to the bonfire. Suddenly there was a massive slam, harder than all the rest, and I heard something break in the distance. That crumbling sound you hear when you know something just got destroyed. Everything got silent, and I hobbled slowly, listening for any sign of what just occurred. Then the demon gave off the same roar as it did when It defeated me, and the moment I heard it I won the gold medal in the hobblers race.

I just made it out of the doors, when i had to duck to the right underneath the overhang to avoid the horrific demon as it hovered over the courtyard into the room which it had left me prone and helpless. For ten minutes I had to wait as It raged and thrashed about, trashing the room for all its worth, looking for its prize. The bonfire was still in its line of sight, so it wasn't safe for me yet. Only after it had calmed down, did I hobble back to the door to peek in.

The demon was on the roof it was supposed to be when I first had walked it. It was sitting, tiny head leaning forward, its great hammer in its lap. I watched it for a moment, took note of the rhythmic rise and fall of its body, and I let out a breath I didn't know I had held. The demon had tired itself out and was asleep.

Feeling safe-ish, I hobbled over to the bonfire and fell down into its soothing embrace. The estus reached out and caressed me as it did earlier, and within moments I was as good as new, with only phantom pains as a reminder of what I had just been through. I looked at the estus flask in my hand, and saw that it was glowing with the dull golden light I had expected. I slipped it into my one good pocket, and then began to think up a plan.

I couldn't fight that demon, not on my own. And apparently that knight couldn't either, even with all his equipment and training. Together, maybe. but was he even still alive? The demon had obviously stuck a grave blow, or killed him outright. I felt a bit sorrowful at the thought and my gaze hit the floor. If he was dead, he had died saving me. let me tell you, that makes you feel like complete shit. Survivors guilt I think its called.

But he might not be dead, there was still a chance that the knight had survived the strike the demon had dealt. If he had... I looked down to the pocket holding the estus flask, and then to the bonfire to my side. If the knight was still alive, I would save him. Give him enough estus to keep him moving and drag his ass to the bonfire. If he wasn't, well, I still needed a weapon, and armor wouldn't hurt either.

I knew of only one place to start, although if the trend of shit not being where it was supposed to kept up, he wouldn't be there. But its all I had to go on.

Quickly, but quietly, as I was hesitant to make much noise lest I wake the slumbering giant I moved to the outlying wall and the iron gated door. It should have been locked, or at least only operable from one side. However it seemed that the earlier scuffle between the demon and the knight had knocked it loose. Grabbing hold of its rusted iron, I gave it a sharp yank.

The door came free, and was heavier than I expected causing me to drop it with a loud clang. I winced at the loud noise, and became still, listening out for any change in the sleeping demon. I didn't hear anything that sounded like a waking fatass, so I kept moving. Up the first flight of stairs I went, until I was face to face with a large hole in the stone brick wall, and a great Iron ball lodged into a pile of rock right past illuminated by a shard of light.

I looked up the stairs to my right, and saw the hollow that was responsible for the iron ball half crushed under a pile of rubble. Its red eyes were glaring at me, and it vainly clawed in my direction with its one good arm. The same hit that knocked the gate off its hinge must of caused the rock to crush the hollow, and let go of the ball it usually presided over. A strange domino effect, that left my path clear.

There was a flicker of hope in my heart, as I peaked around the corner of the hole. A flicker proved justified, as there laid the Knight upon his bed of stone. He was so still in his armor, I was afraid he might have already died. I took a tentative step forward, and my bare foot splashed in pool of the stagnant water. The Knight stirred, his helmed head rolling slightly in my direction.

Through the slit of his helmet he must of seen me in all my teriyaki-style glory, and he struggled slightly to stand. He was unable in his injured state, and with a sigh let his body go slack resigned to his fate. He must have not been able to recognize me, all things considered I couldn't blame him. I walked until I was right in front of him, and he looked back up. Perhaps expecting the killing blow, but seeing me instead.

"Oh, you...Your no hollow, eh? Thank goodness."

His voice echoed strangely throughout the room, seeming to come from all sides. Actually conversing with someone after so long put a lump in my throat, and all I could do was nod, and say "Yeah."

He seemed relived and let his head rest back

"I'm done for i'm afraid...ill die soon, then lose my sanity. You and I, were both undead. Hear me out will-"

He stopped his speech mid sentence due to a round of horrid coughs that I was sure had filled his mouth with blood by the utter wetness of them. I was by his side in a second, reaching into my pocket with one hand for the estus and lifting up his visor with the other. He weakly lifted an arm to stop me, but he didn't have the strength to hold it aloft for more than a moment. It fell back to the rock with a dull clang.

His visor lifted, I caught a glimpse of blue eyes and a shock of brown hair before I covered it over with the Estus flask. Pouring the healing fire down the Knights throat. His eyes widened, but he didn't fight it. I finally found my voice while he was drinking.

"Sorry, but I can't have you dying on me. There is a big ass demon I think your acquainted with, and I can't beat him alone. Also, i'm sorry for this as well."

He finished off the estus rather quickly, and his eyes grew brighter with life as I pulled it away. He looked confused however.

"Sorry for what?"

"This."

Without much warning, as I knew his bracing only made it hurt more, I slung his arm over my shoulder and stood as quickly as my emaciated legs would allow. He let out a gasp of pain, and I let out one of exertion. Damn bastard was HEAVY, and the armor most definitely did not help. Still I managed to get him to his feet, despite his verbal protests. Supporting most of his weight, I started the long trek back to the bonfire. And while it wasn't actually long, it felt long for both of us. Me because of his weight, him likely from the excruciating pain.

Once we finally got close to the bonfire, down what seemed like an endless amount of stairs that had to be taken one at a time, I kinda just tossed him at it. And by toss, I mean i pushed him forward and let the weight of the armor do the real work.

The knight fell down with a clang and a thump and a groan, and was quickly enveloped in a cocoon of estus. I also sat down by the bonfire. Letting the fake fire rejuvenate me and heal my aching shoulder. As quick as It did for me, the estus worked its magic and the knight was soon sitting up by his own power. He turned to face me, and then realizing that his helmet was full of his own blood reached behind his head and undid the clasps holding it tight. It loosened, he pulled off of his head and set it to his side. His face now fully visible I was able to see his features well.

His hair was a dark brown and cut short, ending just above his blue eyes. His face was younger than I expected, likely in his mid twenties. Still having a youthful look about him, yet having a discipline that probably came from his knight training. His features were nothing spectacular, but id wager they were better than average.

Now that he was able to see me clearly we met each others eyes for what was the first time. It honestly was an awkward silence, as it seemed neither one of us knew where to begin or what to say. Thankfully for me, the Knight broke the spell of awkwardness.

"Thank you...for saving me. I am in your debt, friend"

I couldn't help but to snort. He's the one who let me out of my cell, distracted the demon, and tossed me his valuable estus flask. I shook my head and responded.

"You owe me nothing, Knight. Youve rescued me as well, twice even. If anything I owe you."

He gave me a nod,

"I think Ill call it even then, as I would have had to battle that demon anyway. And if I hadn't released you earlier, you would have been unable to drag me from the jaws of death. Even if my battle with the beast had been on more favorable terms, It most likely would have killed me."

He looked away with what seemed to be a flash of shame in his eyes.

"The beast was stronger than I anticipated, and my arrogance would have been my undoing. As it almost was."

I nodded, and tried not to smile. My brain made a connection between his reaction, and the reaction of many new players of dark souls. The asylum demon tore almost everyone a new asshole, and it seems the real characters were no exception.

My side flared up in a phantom pain, which reminded me of a very important fact. This wasn't a game. This was real, and as the Demon had proved to me, not everything was the same as I remembered. I would need to keep that in mind. People and monsters could be in completely separate areas, and items might not have the same effects as they did. The rusted iron ring for example, invaluable in blighttown, would likely be useless now.

Although I didn't show it on my face, I almost screamed at the thought of blighttown. While the lag wouldn't be a problem, everything else about that hellhole would remain.

I left my thoughts to find the Knight staring at me, an expectant look on his face. He must have asked a question, and was waiting for an answer. I felt my face grow hot, and if it could show color i'm sure it would have been red. Well, redder.

"Ah, sorry, right. I sometimes get lost in my thoughts, could you repeat that?"

He gave me a look, but still repeated himself as per my request.

"I said, My name is Oscar of Astora, Fourth son of the Duke of Arendale. If I may be so presumptuous to ask yours?..."

Oscar! Thats what his name was. For some reason i hadnt been able to remember it from the lore videos. Not the most imspiring name, but it definatly beat calling him the Knight.

"Its a pleasure Oscar. I'm...I'm..."

I hit a wall. Not literally like before, but in a more conceptual sense. I tried to recall my name, but I was unable too. It just kept slipping out of my thoughts, like that shitty metaphor about time and sand and fingers. I had no idea why on earth I couldn't remember, and it troubled me greatly.

"I...I don't know."

My look was haunted, and Oscar picked up on it even with my stunted facial expressions. He didn't seem to surprised by it though, and even said as much.

"It's not surprising, all things considered. Your appearance lends weight to the fact that you are indeed going hollow, as does your...odd diction. Being unable to remember ones name, sadly common for one as advanced in the curse as you."

He gave a grim smile to the look of complete horror upon my face, and let out a small chuckle.

"However, you're in luck that I have a cure. Temporary, yes. But very necessary all the same. Especially if you wish to keep whats left of your memories and sanity."

Oscar reached behind himself into a small bad sewn to his belt pulled out a small black object. It shimmered in his palm, with a sliver lining surrounding a core as black as the abyss itself. I stared at it with wonder, and an odd amount of hunger.

"Humanity. Its its physical state that is."

His voice was soft, and full of wonder. I think he must have desired the sprite as much as I did, despite obviously being less hollow than I was. It seemed that all undead despite their level of hollowfication, craved humanity with a fever.

It took an obvious amount of effort for him to tear his eyes away, and to hold out his hand in offering to me.

"Take it."

I stared at it, then at his face. Which was showing a small amount of strain.

I not willing to lengthen his suffering nor my own quickly grabbed the sprite, and marveled at its feel. Even in my hollowed hands, it felt warm and alive. Moving in place with pulsations and shimmering like a shadow. Knowing what to do, I lifted it slightly above my head, and crushed it.

From between my fingers did come a burst of dark light, and black particles which swooped down and slammed into my chest with force that should have moved me, but that I didn't feel at all. All I felt was a warmness in my heart, that had been cold for so long. A feeling in my chest that, while not completely,smothered the emptiness that had been there since my resurrection.

"I feel...better. More whole."

Oscar nodded in approval, the humanity being already disposed seemed to quench his obvious desire for it. Out of sight, out of mind I suppose. Oscar looked up into the cloudy sky

"When you lose whats inside of you, your humanity, a great emptiness takes root. That emptiness becomes a hunger that, if not satisfied, will consume everything that you are. Only leaving itself, in the shell that once was you. That is what its like to become hollow."

His tone was reverent, and solemn. I wasn't sure if he was speaking from his own heart and experience, or quoting someone long forgotten and dead. It honestly made no difference to me, but the words I would have to keep in mind. Hollowfication in this world was a gradual thing it seemed, and it wasn't just triggered by dying. Although I wouldn't doubt that death would hasten the process exceedingly so.

I looked to my decrepit hands, and while I didn't feel the usual depression or surge of anger at their corpeselike state I still felt dissatisfied.

"How do I become like you? Human again, I mean. While not worrying about the cold is nice, a world not blessed with my dashing good looks is scarcely a world worth existing in."

Perhaps the humanity had restored more of me than I considered, as I found it in myself to make a joke as bad as that one.

Humor must have been sorely lacking in that place, as Oscar shook his head and gave a low chuckle.

"I'm sorry my friend but it would take more humanity than I gave you, and that was the last of the sprites that I found. A cleric would be able to aid you, but I truly doubt that any are present at our current location."

A hollow took this as the proper time to let out a sad moan that was amplified by the acoustics of the asylum, and drifted to our ears.

Dampening that small bit of good cheer that was slowly coming into existence. I took this as the proper time to ask a question that had always bothered me, both now and when I played the game.

"Oscar, why me? Not that i'm grateful, mind you. But why was I the one you saved, and not any others? Surely I couldn't have been the only undead in this asylum that wasn't already insane?"

Well, no more insane than usual.

"Actually...you were. I have explored this prison for nigh on two weeks now, ever since I had escaped from my own cell. I have checked every cell, every decrepit corner of this ruin, searching for someone, anyone else with their wits about them. Anyone else that hadn't gone completely hollow. You were the only one."

His tone was morose, and his eyes were shadowed but he managed to give off a small rueful grin.

"I did find however, plenty of humanity to restore myself."

Well, that answered more than one of my questions. Where he got the humanity, why he freed me, and why he was in the asylum in the first place. Sent her for being undead He had been a prisoner like I was, locked in his cell for who knows how long.

I was getting real sick of this place. Even outside of my cell, the despair was palpable. It seeped from every crack in the stone, and lingered in the air you breathed, With a heave I threw myself up from the floor and the gentle comfort of the bonfire, brushed the dust off of my pants, and reached a hand out to Oscar who looked at me curiously.

"Lets get the fuck out of this hellhole."

He blinked in surprise, and then gave a genuine grin before taking my hand with his gloved one and helping himself up.

"Aye, I am most ready to make this prison but a distant memory, but..."

He motioned to the door and the Demon that was, thankfully, still asleep.

"...We still need to get passed that warden. And neither one of us seems capable of defeating it on our own."

"Good thing there are two of us then."

"True, but you however are hardly fit for combat. No offense."

I gave myself a once over, From my lack of proper footwear to the rags that I called a shirt. The only bit of attire I found decent were my pants, which were...gently used.

"...None taken. However, I don't think it would be wise to fight that thing directly. It's much stronger than the both of us, and smarter than we gave it credit for."

He nodded, and seemed to catch on to my subtle hint.

"A sneak attack then? The idea has merit, assuming that you have a plan?"

"In fact I do, and its rather simple. When you were on the roof, did you notice the balcony that overlooked the room I was dueling with the demon in?"

Oscar gave me a look when I referred to my running for my life, and failing, as a duel.

"I wouldn't call it dueling, but yes I noticed it, if only in passing."

"Good. So here is the plan. Your going to hide on that balcony, and im going to wake the demon up from below. Its going to jump down and try to kill me, but as soon as it lands your going to jump from the balcony and stab it in the head."

While not much in the way of plans, its all I had to go on. We couldn't climb up to where it slept, and even if we did we didn't have a clear shot to its head. We would have had to climb up it, which would no doubt wake it up. This plan was risky, and I wasnt a fan of risking my ass again. But it would possible, and more likely to succeed than anything else. The plunging attack, like every damn thing else, wouldn't be the same but it would be effective. My only fear was that his sword wouldn't be able to pierce the beasts thick skull, but I was betting on the weight of his armor to give it the extra force it needed.

Oscar seemed to come to the same conclusion and nodded his assent, albeit hesitantly.

"Very well. While full of risk, the simplest of plans tend to be the most sound. But before we begin our task, Id like to find you some form of protection. If my strike fails to kill the demon, we will have to finish it on foot. Without a weapon, you would be useless as anything more than a distraction and it might catch on to that. There are plenty of...bodies here that we can pillage. I suggest we spend some time searching, before undertaking our demon slaying quest."

He made a good point, and I wasn't going to argue. Anything that would help keep me alive was a good thing.

"Alright, but we should try to be quick. I have no idea how long it will stay asleep."

"Agreed."

And thus Oscar and I left the bonfire in search of equipment for me to use. We started our search back up the stairs, finishing the still half crushed hollow that had yet to expire on our way. We opened the gate with a key that Oscar had found earlier, and stepped onto an overlook of the outside world. Oscar made short work of the two hollows that joined us, and we searched them for anything of value. From one I managed to gleam a shortsword in relatively decent condition, and the other had a decent pair of boots that I gleefully removed from its dead self. Finally happy to have footwear, I couldn't wait to put them on until I realized that the hollows feet had came off with the boots, and were stuck.

Oscar put a consoling hand on my shoulder as I grumbled about my misfortune and tossed the boots over the edge, into the graveyard. He was trying not to smile, finding my lack of luck humorous.

"Ha. Ha. Ha." Was my clever retort.

But in throwing the boots, I took notice of something I had forgotten. slumped against the short wall was a corpse, holding tight something to its chest. If my memory served me correctly, that corpse should be holding either a talisman, or a pyromancy glove. I rushed over to it, in a rather excited fashion, and tore pried its hands open.

To my chagrin, there was not a pyromancy glove, my preferred find. Nor was there a talisman, that while not so useful might have come in handy later. Instead clutched by what was now obvious to me a dead woman, was an old and rather peculiar doll. The doll struck something in my memory, but I didn't feel like wasting time trying to figure out what. For whatever reason I decided to pick the grubby thing up and pocketed it. Perhaps it would be useful later.

Done with my current pillage, Oscar and I rounded and corner and I was thrown to the side as Oscar pushed me out of the way of an arrow. I landed with a thump and an exclamation of pain, while Oscar charged the hollow. Sheild raised, he smashed the poor bastard directly in the chest. Crushing decaying bones, and sending it clear over the edge. I winced when I heard the crunch of its landing.

I got back on my feet using the wall as support and walked over to where Oscar now stood, Inspecting something the Hollow had dropped. It was its bow, and long bow to be precise, in rather good quality too. The wood was marred but undamaged for the most part and the string was barely frayed. It would have been a good weapon, If I could shoot a bow and if the only source of arrows we knew of wasn't currently crushed and out of our reach. Still, I grabbed it and slung it over my shoulder.

Into the next room we went, where their was another hollow laying in wait. However this particular hollow, was different than the previous ones. For one it was wearing armor, even if it was of the shitty variety. Armor was armor. In one hand was a shield, a hollow soldier shield I believe, and the other held a longsword. This is what we needed, a hollow with shit we could actually use. I stood back, While Oscar approached it with the express intent of ending its un-life.

However its outfitting was not the only difference this hollow had with its fellows. As Oscar approached it did not blindly charge, but instead moved forward at a cautious pace. Sheild raised, and sword at the ready. If I had to guess, it might have been on of the actual guards, before becoming as hollow as the rest of the asylums occupants. 

Oscar took note of his opponents obvious caution, and took precautions of his own. It wasn't very visible, a shift of a foot, a tilt of his shoulders, the lowering of his visor. It reminded me that Oscar was indeed a knight who had likely trained for years, and indeed had skill in combat.

When your previous knowledge of him was entirely based around him dying every time you started a new character, you tend to forget these things.  
The hollow attacked first, with a vertical slash from his longsword Oscar deflected with his shield. Oscar then retaliated with a stab, that the hollow blocked full on with his own shield. Oscar followed up with a kick to said shield, that sent the hollow off balance. However, The Knight had to take a quick step back, as the hollow quickly regained its footing and slashed again, this time at Oscars knees.

Sword met sword as Oscar chose to block this time with the flat of his blade, before spinning around and slamming his shield hard into the face of the hollow who's shoddy helmet flew off from the force and landed with a clang. Disoriented from such a blow, the hollow let out a wide swing that was easily parried by Oscar. The hollow had just enough time to show a hint of surprise on its face, before Oscar plunged his blade deep into its unprotected stomach. With a groan, the hollow sunk to its knees and Oscar pulled free his sword. The hollows red eyes dimmed, and like that the battle was over.

I quickly descended upon the fallen foe, and Oscar assisted me in stripping it of its armor. From it I got a chestplate, some shoulder pads, and gloves that fit rather snug. I traded my shortsword in favor of the longsword as it was in better condition, and I tried to lift the sheild. It came off of the ground surprisingly easy, despite being made fully out of metal and I slipped it over my arm. Still no damn shoes.

Now that I was sufficiently equipped, and since neither Oscar nor I wished to wait any longer than needed we decided it was time. Returning back the way we came, I left him at the entrance to the balcony. No fog wall was present, for which I had honestly doubted that there would be one. Before I left him at his post, he grasped my forearm in what seemed to be the equivalent of a handshake.

"May the Gods favor us in our task."

I assumed the sentiment was similar to 'good luck' and I just nodded. He let go, and Assumed his position halfway hidden behind the wall. I left him there, and made my way back to the courtyard. The closer I got, the more anxious I became. I began to lose confidence in my plan, in myself, and in Oscar. If he failed in his plunge, I wouldn't be able to get away. I would be crushed underneath that giant ass hammer, and then Oscar would follow. My journey would end, right at the start. At the fucking tutorial. Any plans or ideas I had for Lodran would be washed away, like the rain would do to my bloody smear upon the stones.

And believe me, I had plans. I wasn't going to let this life go to waste, not with the knowledge I had. It had already been proven to me that things could change. Oscar had survived his first encounter with the Demon who wasn't where he was scripted to be. Instead of a magic tool thingy, I had found a doll instead. If I could influence these changes with what I knew, I could change the story for the better. Prevent people from going hollow, rescue victims from their fate. I could save them. I could be a Hero.

Those thoughts gave me enough confidence to do my part in the plan. With a deep breath I wasnt sure I needed, and stepped through the threshold that marked the Demons domain. Upon the balcony, I spied Oscar peeking around the corner. I shot him a thumbs up, and he returned the gesture. Knowing what I had to do, I raised my eyes to the sleeping monstrosity, cupped my hands around my mouth to amplify my voice, and shouted as loud as I could.

"HEY FATASS!"


	2. Soul of a Nameless Soldier

Chapter 2: Soul of a Nameless Soldier

Oscar missed.

He FUCKING missed.

I watched in horror as Oscars sword missed the Asylum demons head by a clear foot, and instead plunged into its left shoulder. The blade sunk hilt deep into the Demons flesh and bone, and I had to cover my ears as it roared in rage and pain. Oscar having hands occupied trying to tear his sword free, didn't have the same luxury and the loud sound disoriented him somewhat.

That proved to be Oscars undoing, as the demon began to thrash violently about trying to dislodge both the knight and sword from its shoulder. It was partially effective as Oscar was indeed violently thrown from his perch to clatter to the ground, but his sword stayed firmly stuck. The Demon howled in fury, and continued to try to remove the blade but was unable to due to its short arms and fucked up antlers.

Oscar was now weaponless, but it was not a total loss. The stuck sword maimed the demons shoulder, and now it could only swing its hammer with one hand. That was a dual edged sword for us though, because now the Demon was mad as fuck and it showed.

Trust me, when something with a face that ugly gets even uglier, you know you're in more trouble than you were beforehand.

As Oscar was scrambling to his feet, I was swiftly backpedaling to avoid the wild and angry swings of the Demon and trying to think of a new plan. The room quickly got to tiny for my taste, and I decided to try to run around the demon and get to Oscar's side. If I could, I planned to give him my sword and then hide. It would do better in his hands, and id only get in the way.

I was nearly against the wall, and I had only one chance. The Demon swung its hammer in a great arc, and as it lifted its weapon to its shoulder to swing again I ran past it in what was a perfect juke. I couldn't help the small grin of satisfaction when the Demon roared again in fury, and slowly turned to give chase. Its massive girth showing its disadvantages.

Oscar was already to his feet and shaking his head clear by the time I came upon him. The estus flask was already in my hand and I passed it over to Oscar, who accepted it graciously. As he was taking a deep gulp, I told him of my plan to pass him the weapon. He didn't respond verbally, but held his hand out to accept the steel.

Now it was only a question of where I could hide. It might have been craven of me, but I truly didnt have a place in the battle. That said, there really were no places safe to hide. All the pots were smashed, and the columns offered no protection. The gate was still down on the door that was to originally offer salvation. The only way to go was back out the front door, the one that led to the bonfire. But there were two issues with that route. One, it would leave Oscar truly alone against the demon. And two, said demon was between me and the door. I was trapped, and now without a weapon.

"So much for hiding."I said to myself, as Oscar and I both backed up from the advancing demon. Oscar must have heard me, and replied.

"It seems that way, friend. But we might have a way out of this just yet."

I turned my head to look at him

"What do you mean?"

He steadied his stance and gripped the sword with both hands, stowing his crested shield upon his back.

"It means im going to charge the demon, and your going to run while its distracted. Head back up to the balcony, and see if you can do what I could not."

I would have argued, but I held myself in check. Any argument I had to the plan would just be a mix of cowardice and hypocrisy. He had jumped, and risked his literal neck to try to fell the demon. It seems it was my turn to do the same. I nodded and fixed my gaze past the demon to the door, bent my knees, and prepared to sprint. Oscar followed suit, and I waited for his mark. With a shout he charged and so did I.

The Demon wasn't expecting such a tactic, and was caught off guard. I used that to my advantage and got by unmolested. I didn't spare a glance back, but I heard the Demon roar in pain which told me Oscar had landed his blow.

I kept up my pace, sprinting out of the doors and up the stairs until I reached the balcony itself. I had to place my hand against a wall to steady myself. Such a sprint had me tired, but I couldn't rest long. I let go of my wall, and sprinted over to the corpse whose shield and sword I had pilfered. By it lay the short blade which I scooped up in an instant. I ran back to the balcony, and looked over the edge.

Oscar was holding his own, in a manner of speaking. The demon was swinging like a madman, somehow even more furious than it was before at the fact its prey had escaped again. Its wild strikes were slow and sloppy, which allowed Oscar to score several stabs against it. But small stabs with a pointy metal stick didn't do much truly injure something with as much girth as the Asylum Demon.

I wanted to shout out to Oscar, to let him know I was in position but I couldn't. I was fearful it would both let the demon in on our plan, but it could also distract Oscar. If that happened, if he lost his focus for more than a second, he likely wouldn't not survive the ordeal.

I knew Oscar was trying to maneuver them closer to where I laid in wait, but it wasn't working out so well. I had to lure them over to the balcony somehow, but It needed to be a way that wouldn't break Oscars focus. I racked my brain for anything that might work. I could throw a rock, hell I could throw a damn corpse but it wouldn't achieve the desired result.

'What about your bow?' My brain seemed to say, but the counter argument was already prepared.

'I have no arrows you Nimrod, remember?'

'What about the archer who shot them at you?' It seemed to counter.

'Oscar threw him over the edge, along with all the arrows.' Was I seriously this decrepit that my brain would forget such recent events?

'Not all of them...' It whispered and then was silent. What the hell did that mean, not all of them? All the arrows in the quiver went with the hollow on a one way trip!

Of course, that wasn't counting the one it shot at me.

I wanted to hit myself, and I ran over to where Oscar had thrown me out of the way. It took a slight bit of searching, as the ground wasn't clear of debris but eventually I found it. An arrow, slightly worse for wear but still fully functional. I grabbed it and went back to the balcony, Trying my best to remove the bow from its place over my shoulder at the same time.

While I was attempting to nock the arrow I hid around the corner and peeked at the battle below. Not much had changed in the minute I was gone, Oscar was still dodging and stabbing, and the Demon was still furious but facing away from me.

With great strain, I managed to pull back the string of the longbow and tried to hold it like the instructors at a renaissance fair I had gone to years before had told me.

Legs spread.

Back straight.

Head forward.

I took aim, using the arrow head as a sight. My target was the demons back. Not quite the broad side of a barn but the equivalent in size. I took a really deep breath. If I missed this shot, I would have to figure something else. That would take time that Oscar didn't have, as from here I could tell his movements were already getting slower and more sluggish. He was exhausted from all the dodging and thrusts, and it showed. The Demon had noticed as well, and with its nearly unlimited stamina pushed even harder.

Even with my inexperienced aim, I didn't have the luxury of missing.

I exhaled and let the arrow fly.

I had just enough time to think 'Oh fuck I missed' before the arrow plunged into the Asylum Demons upper back with a meaty thunk making me feel like Robin Hood. Or, I guess Pharis would be a better comparison if I considered my location.

I didn't have long to celebrate, as the Demon whirled around to face me. It didn't see me at first, but before I could hide again It looked up. Our eyes met, and its beady black orbs very clearly expressed a murderous intent that I did not find at all comforting. With a shocking and terrifying quickness it RAN to my position.

And I froze. I could have backed up, I could have run. I could have done any number of things but the fear I had tried to keep in check had gotten the better of me. I watched on as the demon crouched below me in preparation to jump.

Of course, that gave Oscar just enough time to catch up to the Demon and sink the blade of the longsword as deep as it could go...

...right into the demons ass.

And it SCREAMED.

Not a roar, as before, but a true high pitched scream of pain. Its metal enema had clearly wounded it in ways it had never been wounded before, and stopped its leap before it occurred. I couldn't see Oscar from where I was standing upon the balcony, as the Demons large form blocked him from sight. But I hoped dearly that It wouldn't sit on him.

Such a scream had freed me from my statute like state, and I dropped my bow to fully grasp the shortsword in both hands. With a shout of my own, I threw myself into the air. Time seemed to slow down, And I was able to take in the face of the monstrosity before me in all its horrific glory.

That was, you know, before my sword lodged itself into the demons forehead.

I stuck there for a moment, my sword not moving. Stuck directly against the face of the asylum demon, legs dangling below. It took a frightening moment where I thought the Beast might open its mouth to bite a chunk out of my unprotected sides, but then I started to descend. My weight dragged the blade down through its face, bisecting it, before continuing down its body like a macabre elevator. As soon as my feet touched the ground, I let go and backed the fuck up.  
Oscar had a similar notion, and had already abandoned his sword for the second time in the demon. We stood side by side and watched as the Asylum demon, the would be killer of us both, collapsed to the ground. It twitched and spasemed for a moment what could have been agony, and what could have been nerve spasms before going still.

Neither one of us was willing to approach it.

"...Is it slain?" Asked Oscar after some silence. I didn't look away to face him.

"I think it is."

He let out a deep sigh of relief and began to walk towards the fallen foe. I followed his example, keen on getting ahold of that key and getting the fuck out of the asylum when the corpse began disintegrating before our eyes. we both jumped back with a exclamation, with differing degrees of vulgarity.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!"

"BY THE GODS!"

Bit by bit the corpse of the asylum demon eroded into pale white motes that floated up before disappearing, looking a bit like snowflakes in reverse. The process didn't last long, and by the time we had composed ourselves it was over. Nothing remained of the creature that nearly ended both of our lives save our swords, its hammer, and a small pile of junk.

Me and Oscar looked at each other in bewilderment. He had likely never seen anything like that, and I hadn't either. We both moved cautiously to where the corpse used to lay. Oscar picked up his original sword, and slid it into its scabbard. I gathered my two blades, and due to lack of any proper places of storage placed them back on the ground to the side.

Oscar was already rummaging through pile left by the Demon, and I joined him in searching for whatever may be of use. The main thing we needed to find was the key to Asylums doors, but we did find other things of value. Several coins of various metals, a dagger, and a decent pair of boots that I donned with glee. I also found a tunic and belt, and I wasted no time stripping of my armor and so called shirt in order to wear actual clothing. It felt wonderful not be half-naked anymore.

Near the bottom of the pile was the key, found by Oscar who pulled it free with a triumphant laugh. I cheered with him, until I noticed the bony hand still attached. That hand, among other various bones then made it clear exactly what the pile was. It was the leftovers of the demons stomach, that hadn't disappeared with it.

I was literally wearing dead mans boots, but the thought didn't bother me as much as I thought it should.

Key in hand, Oscar and I divided up the desirable loot between us before unlocking the great big door that led to the outside world. We did it with little fanfare, despite the buzz we both had gained after defeating the demon. We were simply ready to leave.

Me and Oscar both took a door, and together pushed open the last barrier of our freedom. A cold wind blew in through the enlarging gap as if the asylum itself was trying to hinder our escape. We held our ground against the wind, and didn't let up until the doors were wide open. We stepped forward into the graveyard. A sense of triumph hit me, and I clasped Oscars arm in the same medieval style handshake he had given me earlier. A huge smile was on my face, because we had actually escaped the Asylum. And Fuck that place.

"We did it Oscar! We are finally out of that shithole!"

He smiled back with shared elation.

"Yes we did my friend. Together we make quite the team."

His smile faded a bit, as he seemed to consider something.

"Oscar?"

I asked, wondering what perturbed my companion. I had a suspicion as to what I could be, but I wasnt sure. He let go of my arm and looked out over the cliff edge to the snowy mountains beyond.

"Thou who art undead, art chosen. In thine exodus from the undead asylum, maketh pilgrimage to the land of ancient lords. When thou ringeth the bell of awakening, the fate of the undead thou shalt know."

Oscar was reciting his families prophecy. Even though I had heard it many times before, it sounded different. Sincere. Now it was something real, being spoken by a person who had truly saved my life, and helped to free me from a fate worse than death. Imprisonment, followed by insanity.

When he had finished his recital he faced me again.

"That was a saying in my family, an old prophecy passed down from father to son. It was why I willingly let myself be captured by the undead hunters, so that I may have been sent to the undead asylum in order to fulfill it. I know not where you plan to go friend, but I must make haste to Lodran."

He placed his hand upon my shoulder, and stared me dead in the eyes. It made me feel odd, but I was listening with rapt attention.

"However, now I do not have to do it alone. I ask you now Friend, Will you accompany me upon this pilgrimage? You may not be trained as a warrior, but you have a courage only seen in the greatest knights of Astora and I would be honored to have you by my side."

The fuck was he talking about courage? I wanted to run and hide the entire time, and when that failed I froze up like a bitch. Still, of course I would go with him. Lodran was my destination, and having an actually trained knight with me would be an immense boon. I nodded my assent.

At once all worry disappeared from his face and his smile returned with an infectious force. We began to climb the ruined steps of the graveyard hill up to the summit. I noticed snuggly's nest to the right, but didn't see the eggs so I ignored it. Once we reached the top, we gazed around taking in the beautiful sight of the mountains. I knew what I was waiting for, but I think Oscar was clueless. I told him of the giant crow, to which he seemed dubious. Still we waited, but Oscars patience began to run thin.

"Why are we waiting here? Its been nearly an hour."

His voice was agitated, and he was pacing.

"Patience Oscar, it will come. And unless you have a better idea on how to scale sheer cliff walls your just going to have to be patient and trust me. Itll come."

He let out a grunt and sat down before pulling out a whetstone and began sharpening his blade. The rhythmic sound of stone on metal was hypnotic, and I found it strangely relaxing. It was in that relaxed state that I began to remember the hints of what could have been my name, but I was unable to fully recall it. Frustrated I kicked a nearby gravestone, only to have it fall over. Sending dust flying into the air.

I coughed violently, and used my hand to fan the small cloud away. My own actions were not very effective, but the windy cliff assisted me. Once the dust cloud had cleared I looked down to the stone, and the almost faded writing. All that could be made out was a name, the epitaph long since consigned to oblivion. I bent down and traced the letters with a finger. The stone was rough underneath my glove.

I traced and read the name, and let it bounce around in my skull for a moment. I was sick of being nameless, it being one more part of this cursed place that robbed you of your self. Thus I resigned to claim the name on the tombstone as my own because I was not likely to remember my previous one any time soon.  
And perhaps that was for the best. This was a new life, and maybe a new life warranted a new name. A new start. And hell I was already wearing the clothes of the deceased and brandishing their weapons. What was a name, to add to my pillaging? As long as I remembered what was important, as long as I held my core safe from the hungry claws of hollowing , I could stand to be something new.

"Oscar, I believe I have a name for myself."

I informed him. Oscar paused in his sharpening .

"Have you at last come to remember it?" He asked, a bit of the sourness fading from his tone. I shook my head.

"No, but that's alright. If we are going on this journey, a new name might not be such a bad thing. Many things have changed for me, and I have the feeling that they will continue to change. If i'm to survive the experience, Ill have to change with it."

Oscar seemed to understand, but he really had no idea just how much change I was talking about. He must have thought I meant becoming undead, and he was right in a sense. But for me, becoming undead had been a bit more...transformative than for most. Being dead and brought into another dimension and all.

"So what is the name you have chosen for yourself? I am anxious to hear it, as I would indeed like to know the new identity of my comrade." Said Oscar.

Feeling an urge to be dramatic, I went to the edge of the cliff and struck what I thought was a heroic pose.

"I am he who the legends speak! The brave warrior cursed by the darksign and locked away in the Undead Asylum! I have been freed from my imprisonment, by the Proud Knight Oscar, and I have taken up arms in order that my name be known far and wide! Let my enemies tremble in fear in its utterance, and let the maidens hold on to their underwear!"

At this point Oscar was staring at me with an amused look, which was part of my goal with the theatrics. To break him out of his understandably bad mood. I then threw both of my arms into the air and shouted to the heavens.

"I AM RUFIO!"

The acoustics of the area caused my declaration to echo about in a rather lackluster way, but I did not move from my pose until I feel the point had been made. My audience only gave a chuckle. I kept up the charade with an indignant snort.

"What do you find funny, Sir Oscar? Do you find my noble and powerful name, or my proper display to be amusing? Hmm?"

Composing himself, he seemed to play along.

"No no no, Mighty Rufio, I did not mean to offend! My chuckle was not aimed at such a great and powerful man such as yourself, I had simply remember a jest from my childhood. Nothing more."

Oscar bowed deep and low and added a sarcastic twirl of his hand for full effect. I acted mollified by his toadying, and tossed my nose into the air.

"Very well!" I proclaimed in my best snooty voice.

"I accept your explanation, see to it it does not happen again, lest you incite my ornery wrath!"

We were both smiling, until a great shadow loomed over me. Oscar immediately dropped his smile, and his hand went for his blade.

"RUFIO LOOK OUT!" Oscar shouted.

As I tried to turn around and face whatever manner of beast was behind me I managed to grasp a glimpse of black feathers, before I was wrapped in a grip like steel that trapped my arms in place and ceased my turning. I was rushed forward in the grip, and I heard Oscar shout before a clang of metal rung thru the air followed by several sounds of frustration. It seemed that our captor had captured him with all the ease that I was acquired, and it once we took off into the air.

The moment we were airborne, I lost the feelings of fear and anxiety. It was the crow that had grabbed us. It had been near the asylum the entire time, and only came once it heard my shouting. Thats what I figured anyway, considering its timing. And now we were on our way to Lordran.

I couldn't hear Oscar struggling over the beat of the crows mighty wings, and thus I shouldn't be sure if he had figured out that this was our transportation. I tried shouting to him over the noise, in an attempt to ease whatever worries he might have had but it was to no avail. All I could do was try in relax in the crows hard talons, and wait.

We would be in Lodran soon.

Soon was a relative term, as the rest of that day and the night passed us by while in the grip of the crow. By the time we had arrived in Lodran, it was the next morning and even with dulled sensation I was quite sore. I'm sure Oscar was as well, but if he was complaining I was unable to hear.

When the crow finally dropped us at Firelink Shrine, I nearly kissed the ground. Well, in truth I did but not in the fashion of grateful worship. During the crows ride, all of my stringy muscles had locked together in what was to me one big cramp. So as the crow hovered and dropped us, my face met the dirt in a rather intimate way.

Oscar fared little better, and too hit the ground. However he managed to at least fall upon his hands and thus had the luxury of avoiding the bitter taste of grass. From both of our places upon the ground, we heard a soft and mocking laugh coming from nearby. I recognized it immediately, but Oscar who lacked the knowledge I did, Immediately forced himself to stand and shakily drew his sword.

"Hark, who is there? Show yourself!" Shouted Oscar in what he likely believed was a commanding fashion that was made less so by his shaking knees.  
The voice gave that soft laugh again, and while it did so I was trying to myself off of the dirt and failing. Oscar was still on guard, looking around in a vain attempt to spot the owner of said voice.

"I am here, sir knight." Spoke who I knew to be, as he was called, the Crestfallen Warrior. If he had a true name, it was never discovered by the lore fanatics but I felt that I might know it soon enough.

Oscar turned around, as he had been facing the ruins themselves, and spotted the Crestfallen Warrior sitting directly by the bonfire. An amused smile upon his face that didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Very impressive, sir knight. You managed to discover me. Truly your skill must know no bounds."

The Warrior was a bit more sarcastic than I remembered, but he would have an actual personality now that he was a living being, so I didn't let it bother me. Oscar on the other hand, was seething. He did not take well to being mocked, especially after a long and arduous ride stuck in place within a crows grasp, and it showed. I was beginning to think my compatriot wasn't the most level headed of individuals, so before he could do anything rash, I called out to him.

"Oscar."

He ignored me, and kept staring at the still smiling warrior. His hand was slowly reaching down to his sword belt. I was getting more than slightly worried at his behavior, and called out to him again with more urgency.

"Oscar!"

This time I manged to grab his attention. He pulled his gaze away from the warrior to look at me. As he replied his tone was strained with anger and indignation.

"Yes, Rufio?"

"Oscar, I cant get up on my own yet. Would you kindly help me to the bonfire?"

While I knew I was no Frank Fontaine, I was hoping the niceness to the plea might incite him more to help. It might not have been necessary though, as when Oscar noticed the state I was in he rushed over to my side and helped me to stand. With his support, I got the bonfire and sat down before the healing estus with a pleasurable sigh. That stuff is fucking great.

Oscar sat down beside me, and his mood instantly brightened as all the aches and pains disappeared in an instant. Before us sat the crestfallen warrior, who still had that infuriating look on his face. I was able to ignore it, and with the estus placating Oscar, so did he. However the warrior was not done talking, and his voice filled what would have been welcome silence as he looked us up and down.

"Well what do we have here, new arrivals? Let me guess. Fate of the undead, right? Well your not the first."

The words might not have been meant to incite Oscars ire, but they had begun to do so again. Thankfully, he managed to keep his temper in check this time and stared deep into the false fire. The warrior kept speaking, loosing his sarcastic tone and taking on the more sullen one he was known for.

"But there's no salvation here. You'd have done better to rot in the Undead Asylum… But, too late now."

The warrior let out his soft laugh again.

"Now all there is to look forward to is going hollow."

We all sat in silence for a time after that. Oscar was perturbed, and appeared to be thinking deeply. He might have thought that we were the only ones to escape from the asylum, a thought I also had shared but it seemed that wasn't the case. Still, It didn't change what we were here to do.

I took in the crestfallen warrior, who seemed to be content after sharing his wisdom to simply sit back. He was older than Oscar and I, in appearance at least in his thirties. His face was unshaven, as he couldn't be bothered to clean up his appearance. Short, black hair adorned his head, and he was garbed in chainmail.

"So whats your name?"

I broke the silence with a question, feeling as if we had been stagnant for long enough. I needed to ask the right questions, and get the right answers so that our journey could continue. True, I could have just told Oscar myself of the fact that there were two bells of awakening, and that I knew the general locations of each. I could have told Oscar a lot of things, but I felt like if I revealed too much of my knowledge to quickly it would bring up unnecessary questions on how the hell I knew these things. He might have believed my advice, but I don't think he would believe my tale of reincarnation and would likely think me mad.

I didn't want to alienate the only ally and friend I had in Lodran, so I would have to be more tactful. Telling him of the crow might have been a mistake, and I would have to be more careful in the future.

The crestfallen warrior looked at me with a lackadaisical turn of his head, and gave that fake smile again.

"I do not give out my name to strangers, especially those who wont likely last long enough for it to matter."

"Is that a threat?" Oscars low tone cut in, to which the warrior raised his hands in a placating gesture. No longer wishing to irritate the knight.

"No, no. Nothing of the sort. Just a fact. When undead like you come to Lodran, they simply don't last long. Thats all. They rush into battle, dead set on trying to ring the bell at the church. Most of the poor fools don't even know that there are two bells to begin with, and even less stay human long enough for it to matter."

"There are two bells?" I inquired, already knowing the answer.

The warrior gave me a look as if I was an imbecile.

"Yes, that's what I said didn't I? Two bells. One above, in the Undead church. And one below, In that plague infested blighttown."

He gave a visible shudder, which lead me to believe that he had previous experience with that hellhole.

This time, to my benefit, Oscar asked the question.

"How do we get to this Undead Church? And for that matter, where are we now?"

"Why, all you would have to do is take the elevator in that cliff face, by that portly cleric. However, the lift is broken so it seems the easy route is unavailable. Ha ha ha...You would have to go through the Undead Burg, in order to reach the parish but it is truly infested with hollows! To get to the burg itself, now that is a fun trip, you will have to go through the ancient waterway yonder."

He pointed with his right arm to the chasm and the bridge like waterway the stood above it. Our eyes followed his finger to the path, and the stairs we would have to climb.

"As to where you are...if you haven't guessed it yet you have made it to Lodran, the land of ancient lords and your final resting place. Congratulations. In particular though, this ruin is known as Firelink Shrine. A sort of...refuge for undead like myself. Who seem quite unwilling to throw away our humanity on a fools errand."

The warriors tone dropped its fake jubilation, and he truly sounded like his namesake after saying that. I was going to pipe up and inquire about the cleric I knew as Petrus of Thorolund, to see about truly restoring my humanity but the warrior continued on.

"There used to be more of us. The fool pyromancer, and sorcerer. Knights of Berenike and of Balder. Even the legendary Iron Tarkus once shared this bonfire. But one by one, they all left to try and fulfill the prophecy. None have ever returned. Now its just me, that shifty cleric, and that poor firekeeper. Waiting around to go hollow. THAT, is the true fate of the undead."

His solemn tone had vanished by the end of his monologue, replaced by scorn. The warrior stood up with a suddenness that startled both Oscar and I, and he walked over to his traditional perch with a harshness in his steps. As he sat down, We began to talk amoungst ourselves in low tones.

"I don't trust him"

"Why not Oscar? He seemed to be truthful with us." I responded.

"I'm not sure...there is just something about his manner I do not like."

The way Oscar said it, with such suspicion and a shifty eyed glance at the topic of interest... I couldn't help myself, I had to laugh.

"Oscar, you don't like him because hes an ass. Thats all there is to it. He had no reason to lie to us, if he thought we were destined to hollow anyway."

"His status as an ass is not in question" Some mirth had returned to Oscars tone, but he still remained serious.

"However, that does not prove his honesty. Still i'm willing to believe him about that cleric, and if we want to get your humanity restored full we should go see him."

Truthfully, I didn't want to see Petrus. There were not many characters in the dark souls world that actually had earned my hatred, in fact there was only one I could think of. Petrus. The bastard was, in his own words, a 'Wolf in sheeps clothing'. He left Rhea to die in the catacombs, and I never doubted that it was he that caused Vince and Nico to go hollow in the first place. The man was a fucking snake, and unless it involved gouging out his eyes with a rusty spork before feeding them to him I wanted as little interaction as possible. Up into the point when I kill him at least. I wasn't letting him live. He had no place in my plans, unless that place was in the ground.

Still, he was the only cleric I would likely see for a long time and the beef jerky look was getting old. I wanted to be human again, and the only way I was going to be that way was to grit my teeth and deal with Petrus.

"Agreed. Our sarcastic friend said he was by the elevator to the church. If that's the church..."

I said, motioning to the loomed church upon the cliff.

"...then chances our that the cleric we seek is in that direction. Lets go."

And so Oscar and I left the bonfire and made our way through the ruins of the Firelink shrine. While he didn't seem too impressed, I found the experience quite impressive. How many times had I wandered these ruins, ran by them in game? Seeming them in person was quite nice.

However, all good things must come to an end. That end being us coming upon Petrus, standing in a relaxed fashion. He wore his black clerics armor, and at his side hung a viciously spiked morning blonde hair was in styled in a ridiculously poofy bowl cut, and his jaw was traced with a darker fuzz. His eyes were shadowed and heavy, similar to his past and weight respectively. Instead of walking up and punching the fake smile he gave us right off of his fat face like I wanted to, I smiled back just as falsely.

"Are you the esteemed Petrus I've heard so much about, great cleric from the land of Thorulund?"

The bullshit rolled off of my tongue like water, a tactic I had picked up in another life. It was an easy way to tolerate the presence of those who had earned your scorn, to smother them with flattery. With the sincerest wish that they would choke upon it. Petrus, if he caught on to my falsehood, didn't show it but only smiled wider with some actual feeling. It seemed just like all villians, he was a narcissist. Oscar shot me a glance to which I saw from the corner of my eye, but I ignored it. I was working.

Petrus responded in a happy but guarded tone. He obviously appreciated the implied compliment, as im sure he got very little of those. But his deceitful nature made him wary.

"Indeed I am Petrus of Thorolund. Cleric of the church, and servant of the gods. But I seem to be at a disadvantage, as I do not know the identity of you or your companion. If you would be so kind as to remedy this?"

I know exactly who you are you fuck, is what I wanted to say but I bit my tongue. I kept up my boisterous act, and gave him our names.

"Ah, of course! Sometimes I forget myself, my apologizes. I am Rufio, and my comrade at arms is the knight Oscar of Astora, son of the duke of Arendale!"  
Oscar gave a short bow at my introduction, and didn't fill in my unsaid fact of his being the fourth son. While I wasn't exactly sure how the peerage worked in my past world, much less this one, I was sure telling that he was forth in line to inheritance would not make a good impression. And this bastard would no doubt be more inclined to restore my humanity if he thought he was earning the good will of a high standing inheritor. I continued on.

"We, are humble warriors on a pilgrimage from the undead asylum itself to this, the land of ancient lords. We have come to ring the bells of awakening, and learn the true fate of the undead as the gods have decreed. To this purpose, we have come to you for aid, noble Petrus."

I almost puked at calling him 'noble'.

"As you can no doubt see, while cognizant, my appearance is closer to that of the hollows than of my peers. We wish to remedy this , but on our own are unable to do so. Petrus, I ask of you, would you be so kind as to restore my humanity?

His response was not as I was expecting, as first he laughed. I had the sinking feeling my ruse didn't work, which was only amplified by his reply.

"My, Rufio. You are quite the lively one for a walking corpse, hm? While I appreciate your flattery, it is to no avail..."

Shit.

"...as I am a servant of the gods, and it is my duty as a cleric of the way of white to held free you of your sorry state! However, I am waiting for my travelling companions and this is our arranged meeting place. I cannot leave until they do arrive. Still I do wish to assist. How about this, I will teach you the method for restoring it yourself?"

Now that threw me of guard, as I thought he had clearly seen through me. Perhaps it wasn't that simple...maybe his cruelties applied only to Rhea? If he was willing to help though there must be a catch. Oscar thought the same thing, and called Petrus out on it.

"You would teach us the sacred rite, kept privy to only the clerics of the church? Surely you must be in jest!"

Petrus's smile grew only larger.

"It is no jest, Sir Knight. In times and places such as these, rules can be...bent so to speak in order that the will of the gods be carried out best. Of course, I could not do such of thing for those not of the way! Perhaps if you were to show your faith to the gods..."

Petrus placed his hand out, as if waiting for an offering. So the catch was the greedy fuck wanted payment, simple enough. The only issue being I had no idea what to give him. Well, that was a lie, but for the life of me I didn't know how on earth souls could be used as currency, or if that even was still the coin of the realm.

Oscar, again saving me from awkward questions, stepped forward and placed his hand over Petruses and held it there.

"Very well." Said Oscar. "Im sure a small token of faith is not too much to ask, for such treasured knowledge."

I watched on in awe as a shining light began to emanated from Oscars hand, before what appeared to be glowing orbs floated down from his palm and into the clerics. It went of for maybe ten seconds or so, in which too many orbs to count changed hands. Once no more came, Oscar stepped back and we both looked to Petrus expectantly.

Petrus was standing there with a thoughtful expression, as if he was mulling over the worth of the amount he was given. I thought the fat fuck was going to ask for more, until his expression turned satisfied.

"Your faith is most appreciated. Now listen well, the rite is deceptively simple but tricky all the same. This is how you go about it..."

And so Petrus explained to us the way to restore ones humanity at a bonfire, without the aid of a cleric. He didn't not lie about its simplicity, as it truly was so simple I wanted to smack myself. All one had to do was use their darksign, in a manner similar to how I lit the bonfire. By placing the darksign by the estus, I could will some of my humanity into the bonfire. In return, the bonfire would restore my to my human form.

We thanked Petrus and left rather shortly after and returned to the bonfire. The crestfallen warrior was still at his perch, but spoke not. Only watched with sullen eyes as I crouched before the bonfire and performed the rite.

At once I was awash with familiar sensations long since forgotten. Heat and cold, smells and touch. I could taste the air on my tongue, and feel the grime on my skin to a much greater extent than I was able to before. I was human again, truly. And while the hunger within felt even stronger from the humanity I sacrificed, I didn't care in the least.

This is what I had made that deal for. To be alive again, not stuck in some limbo form of half death. It was glorious!

"Well then Rufio, you are recalled to life! So to speak. How do you feel?" Asked Oscar, as he watched on while I proceed to do several manner of stretches and easy exercises. enjoying the burns and strains of actual muscles and not the fucktough sinew that assisted me before.

I didn't respond, I only smiled as I ran and leapt about the courtyard. Earning the ire of the warrior who didn't complain but glared non the less.

After some time of my antics, I had broken up a sweat which keyed me in to just how filthy I actually was. I inquired to the warrior about bathing in the pool which marked the center of firelink.

"Go ahead, its fine. Another moment without you doing so, would have me drowning myself in the pool in question. Ha ha ha ha..."

The pool itself was cool, clear, and surprisingly not stagnant as I thought it might have been. Dipping my hand into the cool water, I felt the slightest of pulls, and determined that there must be a spring below to keep the water fresh. Probably the same spring the old well near the bonfire had once attained water from. I just hoped that the spring was miles away from the toothy serpent who was sleeping just below.

It was in the still water, that I was able to catch a glimpse of my now restored face. I was pale, which was contrasted by the longer auburn locks that covered my head. My face my unremarkable, id say, with my only striking feature being two bright green eyes. Of course, my other features were the copious amounts of dirt smudged all over my cheeks and forehead.

I scooped the refreshing water up in both hands, and splashed it to my face before rubbing vigorously in an attempt to clean. There was no soap, and the water was cool, but it was a start. As I was doing so, Oscar came up from the main area. He had been observing the firekeeper, who I had been avoiding. I didn't want to see Anastacia just yet. Not until I had figured out some way to give that poor woman some form of hope.

"Whats up Oscar?" I asked, my voice altered by my washing hands.

I could almost hear him shaking his head, which was impressive seeing that his helmet was removed and hooked upon his belt.

"You have such strange diction, Rufio. Where did you learn to speak like that?"

"Just like my name Oscar, the name of my home has been lost to me as well. Even with my humanity restored, I cannot remember much. I can tell you though, it was very different than anything you've seen."

"It must be, to create such an odd fellow as yourself. Say, would you mind helping me out of my armor? You are not the only one who apparently is hard on the nose."

"Sure." I said "Is that why you are here? The firekeeper couldn't bare you stench a moment longer and sent you away eh?"

We shared a chuckle and I began the process of assisting Oscar in removing his mail. While it wasn't that difficult, I could see how doing it yourself would be a challenge. Buckles and belts and clasps all released their binds, releasing my friend from his tin can. Soon he was released and free to move around for the first time in who knows how long.

Oscar became even free-er, when he began stripping his pants and shirt of right before my eyes. Slightly embarrassed by such a display, I turned my back on him. While I should have guessed that he would be naked, given we were to be bathing, I didn't actually think on it. It seems that modesty in Lodran wasn't very important, at least in the company of the same sex. That thought attempting to put me at ease, I too began to strip down to my birthday suit.

Once Oscar and I were sufficiently in the buff, we both stepped into the water to begin to clean ourselves. Without soap there was only so much I could do, but it did feel nice to cleanse myself of the accumulated sweat, dirt, and grime. With the shallowness of the water there was a lot of bending over involved that I found very awkward, because this also was my very first time bathing with a man.

Oscar was fine the entire time though, and I tried to let that comfort me. However, it was the handful of times that I caught him staring, that quickly killed any and all comfort I had managed to garner. I finished up soon after.

After the bath and the issues involved, we decided to stay the night in order to both rest up for the journey ahead, and to avoid any surprise that might come upon us in the dark. As night fell In Lodran, we both sat by the bonfire and stared deep into its glow. Its orange light made more intense by the blackness that surrounded and threatened to engulf.

As I stared into the glow, my mind was awash with ideas, possibilities and questions. I had so many things to do, but how much time did I have to do them? How would I do them? All night I stared into the bonfire, and pondered.

Howdy yall, Addiccus here with the first authors note of the story. I started writing this fic mainly because of the Dark Souls kick ive been on recently. That was caused by the fact Dark Souls II is going to grace our lives with its magnificent presence soon. Praise that sexy sun. And im hoping against all hope that maybe, just maybe I could finish it before DS2 is released. Chances of that happening are slim, but there is hope!

Anyway, If you can be bothered to read this horrid drivel I call writing you can at least be bothered to leave a review. Ask a question, tell me I suck, make a prediction. If I get a few before I finish chapter 3 Ill make sure to answer what I can, without giving to much away.

And one more request! If anyone feels like coming up with a name for the crestfallen warrior, please send it to me. I could think of one myself, but im curious as to what your suggestions will be. Thanks in advance.

Final thing. If your reading DS fanfictions, Id suggest if you haven't already 3 amazing fics. Breaking the cycle. Old Soul. And while not everyone will agree with me, Darkish Souls. The first two are amazing long stories that will tear your heart out and feed it to Ceaseless Discharge. The third in my opinion, Is abso-fucking-lutely genius and even with its short length is defiantly worth the read. Seriously.

Anyway, see you all next time in the following installment of Soul of a Hero! Chapter 3: Soul of a Proud Knight! Undead burg, the Helkite Drake, and maybe a certain sun praising fellow...

-Addiccus


	3. Soul of a Proud Knight

Alright ladies and gentlemen, a bit of a note here before we start the chapter. First off, I would like to apologize to the amount of time this chapter has taken. It wasn't hard to write, but this last week had been hella busy for me with college, finding a job, and of course the dreaded Valentines day. The next chapter should not take as long, but with life being a bitch I will make no promises I cannot keep. That out of the way, time to reply to some comments!

To the first Anon Guest: This is actually not a self insert. Rufio is OC, and sometimes similarities do bleed through but I have been taking great pains to keep him from just being an in story version of me. Also, glad that you are enjoying it.

To the second Guest and Abyss Phantom: Whats with the Smough hate? Hes a tough bastard, but hes not an outright dick. I will concede on the serpents though. Fuck those guys.

To Ressan: It was never really specified either way, and I am of course taking creative liberties while writing this. The chapter ahead will show you, things are not the same as in the game, much to Rufio's disappointment.

To JPVE: Your a cheeky one aint ya? My end word goal is about 250,000 words, or more. Chapter number will vary, but none will go below 8.5k words. The best estimate will be around thirty chapters, but that is indeed a loose estimate. Also, that is a very good prediction, but what if he never has to fight them? HMMMM? WHAT THEN? OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH! Joking aside most likely.

To my third and final guest: You are a smart cookie, and thus would deserve a cookie if I had any idea who you were. That was one of the few things that had been giving me some trouble, but I have a plan. Even if they are dead and gone, Tarkus and Beatrice will still have a part to play in this story.

And to the rest of my reviewers (All 2 of them) Thank you for reviewing.

Well thats enough of me wasting yalls time. Ill see you at the end of the chapter! This is Addiccus Phinch presenting you with the third chapter in the Dark Souls fanfiction "Soul of a Hero" Enjoy!

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Chapter 3: Soul of a Proud Knight

Undead had no need for sleep, but the night still passed with frightening quickness. It was so easy for one to lose themselves in their thoughts, that we became like living statues. Maybe that is why purposeless individuals so easily became hollow. When your left alone in a timeless place, unable to die, forced simply to think...madness is never far. The rain in the asylum saved me, but how long would it have sufficed? What would have been left of me is Oscar never came?

When dawn came, it broke me out of my reverie. It was like the shattering of glass, so sudden and jarring. It took me several moments to collect myself and thoughts after the impact of the sun's light. False sun? Was the burning orb in the sky Gwyndolin's illusion or the actual sun? It felt real enough to me.

Maybe an hour after dawn, Oscar and I were ready to begin our challenge in the form of the Undead Burg. He, garbed in his knight armor and bearing quality shield and sword, appeared to be ready to take on Gwyn himself. I on the other hand, in my shitty armor and ratty clothes, armed with a simply shield and decent sword, looked like I was ready to get absolutely fucking destroyed by anything with a blade and two brain cells to rub together.

At least I was human though, which meant I was faster and stronger than almost any hollow we should encounter in the burg. Certain exceptions being the Black Knight I was hoping wouldn't be present, and Havel who I was going to make sure we avoided like the goddamn bubonic plague. And then there was the fucking Tauros demon, and the Helkite drake as well.

The more I thought about our challenges, the more my confidence dwindled away. I began to recall the lovely slogan on the back of the case of Dark Souls.

'Prepare to Die'

As Oscar and I climbed up the steps leading to the aqueduct I couldn't help but to mumble to myself.

"Couldn't have sent me to motherfucking Skyrim, could you? You big damn sauron wannabe. Couldn't make me a damn dovahkiin and let me fuck shit up by shouting. Noooo, that would have been to difficult, right? Next time I see you i'm going to get a freakin huge ass paper airplane and fuck your shit up I swear..."

Oscar heard me I think, but if he did he didn't say anything. I think he was begging to think that either I was eccentric, or that my time in the asylum had scrambled my eggs a bit more than was first let on. I would honestly say a bit of both. Becoming human again defiantly had a part in it. Everything was so...dull when I was hollowed. Even my emotions had been dimmed. Returning to normal made me inclined to express myself, even if expressing myself was limited to angry mutterings.

There were no hollows upon the hill, a fact to which I had no complaints in the least. The less fighting we did now, the more energy we would have when struggling to stay alive. The people of firelink, now so few, must have cleared out the hollows when they had greater numbers. I peered over the cliff face to look the abyss miles below, and was given an inkling to how they solved the pesky resurrection problem too.

The aqueduct itself was damp, dark and moldy. An unpleasant combination that had us grimacing. We attempted to keep ourselves to the sides of the tunnel to try and avoid the disgusting water but the walls were to slippery and the edges too narrow. So Oscar and I were forced to walk the entire way to the burg ankle-deep in gross ass water.

Upon exiting the tunnel I was hit with my first view of the undead burg, and I didn't like what I saw. The game had truly kept you on a linear path in comparison to the fucking maze laid out before me.

The burg, despite some obvious similarities, had apparently been through some crazy shit. Buildings were smashed, burnt, and overall fucked up to a surprising degree. Here and there the remains of great fires smoldered. The air itself was thick with ash and dust, and inhaling burned. It looked like a war had taken place.

Also, it was bigger. A lot bigger than I remembered. Now the size of an actual town, and not just a convoluted level. Getting through it now would be hell.

"What the fuck happened?" I asked aloud. This was not how the Undead Burg was supposed to be. Not even close.

"I do not know Rufio, surely hollows could not have caused this much mindless devastation. This town has been truly laid to waste, what was left of it anyhow."

Oscar's voice was muted in awe of the destruction.

I seriously was at a loss for what could have happened, and that worried me. Whatever I thought I knew about what should have been was quickly proving useless, and fast. Still, some things had to be the same. People, demons, and items may have moved about but bonfires should be where they were in the game. And to our luck there was a bonfire in undead burg, the one underneath the bridge. I couldn't see it from where we stood, but I had a general grasp of where it was from our location. I knew it would be in our best interest t head there first.

But now I was faced with the question how to get us there without letting Oscar know that I knew where the bonfire was. The solution was simple enough. I would take point. But first, I would need to convince him to let me lead.

"Alright Oscar, let's do this. If you will, Let me take lead. I'm less encumbered than you and that helmet of yours makes it harder for you to see. I should be able to spot any danger easily, and move out of the way quick enough for you to kick its ass."

I said to him, placing my hand upon his shoulder. He seemed rather uneased by the burgs state, and I hoped the gesture might help him. As well as help to reinforce my words.

It did, or rather, my speaking did. As he shook off whatever feelings he might have hand and commented on my plan.

"As always Rufio, your plans are eloquent in their simplicity." A dry humor resonated from his tone. "At least this one doesn't have me jumping of a ledge onto the back of an angry demon."

"Hey, I had to jump on the demon too, And I had to do it while it was looking dead at me! Did you see how close I was to its face? It could have kissed me!"

Was my indignant response. Oscar took it in stride, with a comeback already prepared.

"Yes yes, i'm sure you would have enjoyed every moment of it too. At least you didn't have to get behind the damn beast. By the Gods the stench! If it a flatulated I likely would have been driven hollow on the spot by the smell alone. Much less the force of the wind such a creature would create!"

I grinned and patted him on the back. It seemed that in this world, as in my original, the best way for a man to calm his nerves was to crack fart jokes and make light of the efforts of his compatriots. Plus, I had to admit, he won that round.

"You have a point my friend, now let's get on with it. The sooner we get through the burg, the sooner we can ring the bell, and the sooner we can get the hell out of here."

"Then let us make haste, but we should move slowly. Who knows how strong these building still are, or where any hollows may be lying in wait. If this was truly a home for undead, there have must be some around."

Which was another thing that bothered me, where were all the hollow soldiers? The burg should literally have been crawling with them. Still, no signs were evident. Everything about this place just screamed of hidden danger. Either they all were in hiding, or something had arrived before we had and proceeded to fuck shit up. Neither one was good for our health, to be certain.

We had to start moving though, and since I had so eagerly claimed leadership, I was the one who had to take the first steps into the hellish burg.

"Here we go."

* * *

It was nerve-wracking, sneaking through the burg as we did. Every creaky floorboard had us freezing in place and listening intently. Every once in a while a crash would echo in the distance, causing our breath to hitch and alerting us that we indeed were not alone. something was out there. something that wrecked the burg and its inhabitants. something that drug away their CORPSES.

Oscar and I had found evidence of struggle. Recent Struggle. Bloodstains covered entire rooms, deep gouges marred walls. Broken weapons and armor scattered about, as if the fallen had been stripped before being drug off to god knows where. It was deeply disconcerting.

We pushed on, despite the fears we both were carrying. While the burg was larger, the general layout was the same, and I was navigating well enough that I could at last see the tower and the bridge that lead to the parish. The tower where I wasn't so sure the Taurus demon still kept residence. Some of the marks we had seen had to have been made by something bigger than your average motherfucker, and the Taurus demon sure fit the bill. There was also the Capra demon and its dogs to worry about, but they likely prowled the lower streets, and not the upper buildings and bridges that we stalked through.

It was maybe half an hour in, that I needed to regain my bearings. Oscar pointed out a building that was not very far, with a small tower as its roof. It seemed our best bet, and so we marked it as our destination. On our way there, we encountered our first hollows.

It wasn't a large group, three strong, and I wasn't very worried. I could take on one easily enough, and I was sure Oscar could handle the other two with greater ease. We hadn't been noticed yet, as the hollows had just ambled out of a building with surprising quickness and had not yet taken the time to look around. Oscar and I brandished our weapons, and we were about to charge in, hoping to catch the hollows unawares.

The moment we began our charge, one of the hollows turned to face us with its glowing red eyes and blank expression. It's already open mouth opened even wider, in order to warn its fellows, but was silenced instantly by a gigantic club that nearly cleaved it in twain. We stopped our charge to witness what had happened. A small cloud of dust and ash had risen from the force of the hit, and we could only see shadows.

And in those shadows was a hulking figure, large and bulky yet unmistakably human. From the ground and the now deceased hollow, it pulled free its massive club with frightening quickness. Two other shadows, the two hollows, charged it swinging their own weapons. From what I could see, they did land blows, but the great figure was unfazed and swung its mighty club in a great arc sending the two hollows flying free from the cloud with a sickening crunch. One impacted a nearby building and splattered gore in a small radius around it. The other skidded across the ground, leaving a large red streak and bits of broken flesh before coming to a stop.

"We should run." I said in a hurried whisper. A cold dread had taken hold of me. I knew who that was. I knew and I knew that if he caught sight of us we were doomed. No if, and's, or buts about it.

"But he might be an ally." Oscar whispered back, but adjusted his stance to run at a moments notice. "He killed those hollows, perhaps he would be willing to assist us? We could use such strength in fighting whatever decimated the burg."

I had the feeling that we were looking right at what had decimated the burg, at least partially. But before I could voice those concerns, the smoke had sufficiently dissipated for the figure in question to come into full view. And the rest of my hope sufficiently dissipated so that I was almost in tears.

Standing before us, In all his glory was Havel the Rock. archbishop of the Way of White, and personal friend of Gwyn himself. His stone armor covered him from head to toe, in a sort of gray sarcophagus that would let no harm come to him. His great shield was upon his back, and over his shoulder was slung his dragons tooth. A mighty weapon that, while stupidly heavy, Havel wielded with disturbing ease. He stood, motionless, and while I couldn't see his eyes I knew that he was staring straight at us.

I also knew, without seeing his eyes, that he was completely and irrevocably hollow. It wasn't just by my foreknowledge. It was in his stance, the way he brandished his weapon. In the fact he was as still as a statue, watching us. Waiting for us to make the first move. Like a fucking predator, measuring the strength and fight of his prey. It made sense now, why the hollows had ran out of the building. They were running from him. Just as I was about to.

"RUN!"

I hit Oscar before charging away to spur him into to action. We needed to get away as soon as we could. Oscar took the hint, and began his own run as well. Despite the greater wight he was carrying, he caught up to me without a hitch. We had ran for maybe ten seconds before a bloodcurling howl was released by Havel, followed by the unmistakable thumps of him giving chase.

"fuckfuckfuckFuckFuckFuckFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK!" I shouted in increasingly greater volume, mirroring the clanking steps of Havel. How in the nine burning circles of high school was he catching up on us? I had no clue how he could move so fast in such heavy armor, but he was doing it like a pro, easily matching and going beyond our current pace. If he started ninja-flipping after us I was going to die on the spot. And not willingly either.

"He's going to catch up to us Rufio! We wont be able to get away!" Oscar shouted. He was sounding out of breath, which didn't surprise me as I was already huffing and puffing like no tomorrow. Neither one of us could keep this up for very long, unlike the imminent death behind us who seemed to not understand the concept of 'stamina'. Oscar was right, if we didn't do something, we were fucked.

So I did the first thing that came to mind. The moment we rounded a corner, I threw myself against the wall and pulled Oscar down as well. To keep him from shouting I placed my hand against his helmet. While I knew it wouldn't stop him from making noise, he should understand the gesture. He did, and kept silent.  
A moment passed in tense silence, as we listened to the clanking of Havel growing louder and louder. Then he rounded the corner, and to my immense relief kept running in a straight line. Heading in the direction we would have run if we still had been running. We kept out eyes glued to his back until he had disappeared from sight around another corner down the path. I mouthed a silent 'thank you' to the sky, before helping Oscar up.

Now, even more slowly and cautiously than before, we began walking back to the tower we had spied earlier. Passing by the mashed hollows was a queasy experience, as it was rather clear to us we almost shared the same fate. We did find one more unmolested hollow on the way to the tower. That hollow quickly found itself sufficiently murdered by the time we were through. It wasn't nearly as quick as the manner in which Havel dispatched his foes, but it was just as brutal. We were taking no chances with Havel being alerted by anything.

That line of thought left us at an awkward position, as the building we were to use to gather our bearings had a locked door. A large splintered locked door, with rusty hinges. A large splintered locked door, with rusty hinges, which creaked when given the slightest push.

"We should be able to break it down, if we struck it together."

Was my excellent suggestion. Save for the one minor flaw which Oscar wasted no time in pointing out.

"Yes, it should be easily accomplished. But that brute might hear us, for this task will not be accomplished quietly."

"Havel. His name is Havel." I corrected. As close as I was, I could see Oscars eyes grow wide through the slit of his helmet.

"Surely you don't mean to say that the hollow juggernaut we encountered earlier was the legendary Archbishop Havel?" His voice was incredulous, and I nodded.

"It was. He became hollow some time ago, and was locked within the bridge tower to keep him from harming others."

Right after the words left my mouth I knew I had made a mistake. because as soon as I finished talking, Oscar stopped right before speaking and took on a thoughtful expression. I became real worried that he might have caught on to my foreknowledge. But it seems that the times I had revealed it were isolated enough, as he shook his head clear and went back to the matter at hand, causing me great relief. I still had no idea how to explain myself other than 'mysterious dreams', which would work if it wasn't for the fact undead didn't sleep.

"Knowing who he is doesn't help us much, it only keys us in to just how dangerous our pursuer actually is. As if we didn't have a good idea of that already. It does raise one question. If Havel was indeed locked beneath the tower, how did he get free? One hollow, no matter how powerful could not have wreaked this much hell. Somthing had to have let him out, being directly or indirectly."

"Shit, I hadn't even thought of that. So not only do we need to worry about Havel, but whatever might have set him free. If we are lucky, whatever did was murdered by him rather promptly, but considering our luck so far..."

I trailed off, to have Oscar finish my sentence.

"...We shouldn't assume so. Either way, we wont get very far if we have no idea where we are going. Perhaps if we smash the door down and get up to the roof quick enough, he wont find us by the time he comes to investigate?" His hopeful suggestion was kinda moot, as we had to break down the door regardless. Either way, no more stalling.

"We can only hope. Are you ready Oscar?" I asked him, as I braced myself to slam into the door.

"As ready as I can be Rufio." Was his reply as he did the same.

"Alright then. On three. One. Two. Three!"

On my third count we threw our weight as hard as possible into the feeble door. It didn't exactly explode, per say, but there wasn't much left of it but scattered planks and splinters. It obviously was more rotten than we thought, and didn't need nearly the amount of force we had put into it to get through. Oscar and I had to pull ourselves off of the floor, as without any real force to counteract our charge we hit the ground pretty hard.

The room we found ourselves in wasn't very large, and had little in it aside from a tabel, a few shelves lined with homey odds and ends, and a fireplace with a large iron kettle. At the end of the room was a ladder, which was our ticket to the top. As we stepped through the room we heard Havel's howl in the distance.

He had heard us.

The ladder didn't take long to scale, and we were at the towers summit in seconds. From there, I managed to spy again the bridge we needed to cross, and its tower underneath which housed the wonderful bonfire. A sight for sore eyes if there ever was one. Following the bridge to the tower where Havel had previously been imprisoned, I finally got a glimpse of what had set him free. Unfortunately for us, it wasnt dead. And even more unfortunately for us, It was the Helkite Drake.

It was nestled right in front of the tower, its large scaly body resting upon what was the remains of a burning building. Now little more than a smoldering bed for the dragon wannabe. Its red skin was magnified from the handful of flames that still burned on, and its great spikes made it seem as if it was almost part of the flames itself. It was a kinda of poetic way for the universe to tell me to go fuck myself.

"So not only do we have a madman with the strength of a dragon, but we have an actual damn dragon to deal with as well. The gods are not smiling upon us today."

I could only nod dumbly at Oscars statement, at this point just depressed as all hell. I would have asked out loud if things could get any worse, but I knew better than to even tempt the fates with that one. Hell, thinking it was bad enough.

There was some good news from our scouting trip. I spied the structure that housed the bonfire, and its surrounding building. They were a familiar sight, being the undead burg I knew well. If we could make it there, we would be safe. Relatively. But we would need to avoid Havel.

"Have you sufficiently gotten your bearings Rufio? It wouldn't be good for us to remain here much longer."

Oscar had been facing the opposite direction that I had been gazing, standing keeping an eye out for our mad pursuer. Once he knew he had my attention, he pointed down to a moving figure that heading in our direction. It was unmistakably Havel.

"I'm good Oscar. Lets go."

We descended down the tower in short order, and managed to get away before Havel arrived. Further prolonging our lifespans as vertebrates. We had only missed him by a hair though, as we heard his clanking enter the area just as we left.

After travelling for a bit we had stepped into a mostly intact building to rest our bones for a moment, when we came across someone I was not expecting to see. He was sitting down at a table, wiping a a cloth across a shining curved blade. Clothed in rags and body decayed, he appeared to be one of the hollowed. He looked up to us with surprised as we entered, his glowing red eyes wide. Oscar and I lifted our swords and moved in for the kill, but the hollow raised his arms in a pacifying gesture and cried out.

"Wait!"

We stopped mid-stride surprised to hear him speak, and then lowered our blades. If he was capable of speech then he certainly wasnt hollow. Neither one of sheathed the swords though. Just because he wasn't hollow didn't mean he was friendly.

"Step away from the table, and from the sword."

I wasn't shouting, but I made sure my voice was loud enough that he got the message. The undead seemed unhappy, and sent a longing glance at his blade, but obeyed. While I kept my eyes on the undead, Oscar moved to the blade.

"This is a marvelous blade, I never seen one like it."

The closer Oscar got, the more anxious the undead seemed to be. I watched him intently, waiting to see if he made a move on Oscar and the sword. He didn't, but right before Oscar could lay his mit upon the hilt the undead shouted out with anger and what seemed to be fear?

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH YULIA!"

Oscar stopped, his hand inches from the sword.

"Yulia?" He asked, perplexed.

"Yes, my Yulia! Don't you dare lay your filthy hands on her!"

The undead was very agitated, and I had no doubt that if Oscar so much as placed his pinkie on the blade the undead would attack. I hoped Oscar would pick up on the mood of the undead, and he did. He looked dead at the undead, right into his red unblinking eyes, and began to slowly creep his hand to the blade.  
I couldn't believe what he was doing, purposefully antagonizing the Undead. Almost goading him to attack. The hell was wrong with him?

"Oscar."

He halted at the sound of my voice, before looking to me. The Undead was livid at this point, and If our swords were not drawn he would have already attacked.

"Yes, Rufio?"

Oscars voice was laced with something I hadn't known to come from him. A certain cruel slickness. The kind of voice a kid uses right before he tears the wings off of a butterfly. It wasn't at all what I expected, and helped to solidify I theory I was forming.

"Oscar, quit tormenting the poor soul and leave 'Yulia' alone. We don't need to be making enemies, we have enough things trying to kill us as it is."

He hesitated a moment, sending one last glance at the sword which I now guessed to be the Uchigatana, before withdrawing his hand and backing away. The undeads eyes followed him for every step, growing visibly relived with each iota of distance. Oscar stood back and I finally returned my blade to its scabbard. Oscar didn't do the same, but I paid it no mind. I knew this fellow, and when I first saw the state of the burg I didn't think he would still be kicking. It was the Undead Merchant, the first one you meet. The one most people killed just to take the very sword lying upon the table. He was a bit of an odd ball, no doubt, but he wasn't hostile until provoked. I just hoped we hadent provoked him.

"We apologize for barging in on you like this, and for threatening you." I said, turning on my charm.

"My companion and I, we have been running through the burg all day. Fighting off all manner of hollows, and running from one in particular we found to be beyond ourselves. We chose this house for a brief rest, and upon entering confused you for one of the many hollows infesting the undead burg. It was our mistake truly." I gave a little bow at the end to accent just how 'truly' sorry I was. Oscar didn't bow, but he did tilt his head in what could have been construed as an apology.

I waved my hand over to the uchigatana and took a step back, as If allowing him passage to his blade. I wasnt actually in the way, but body language was just important in conveying a message as the actual words.

"Please, take your Yulia."

The merchant looked us both over, deciding whether or not to trust us. I gave my most disarming smile, trying to sway him in our favor. He bought it, and finally smiled back in a toothy way, or should I say less toothy way as most of his teeth were missing. Whether it was from being undead, or from some other cause I did not know.

"Well now, I'm glad you didn't touch her! She would have bitten off all of your fingers, she would have. It's good to see a couple of fellows with their wits about them hmm, cause your the only ones who will buy from me! Nee Hee Hee Hee Hee."

The Undead Merchant laughed his shrill laugh, and returned to his seat. His hand immediately began caressing the uchigatana and a serene look came about him.

"Buy?" asked with false curiosity before seating myself across from the merchant, keeping my hands well clear of his 'Yulia'. Oscar took a seat near the door, and watched on impassively. He might have still been irritated from me stopping him, but that was his issue. He needed to get those dark impulses under control before he hurt someone.

"Yes, me and Yulia here. We are merchants, the only ones in the burg! Save for the fact their aren't many customers coming through these parts. Only a scarce few haven't gone and lost their minds yet. Still, its rather nice around here. The hollows don't mind an old twig like me, and there is plenty of 'merchandise' to acquire!"

He laughed again in his admittedly irritating way, and I nodded my head knowingly.

"What kind of merchandise do you have? This burg may be a haven for you, but it is sufficiently more hostile to my companion and I. We might have need to equip ourselves from your wares, if your willing to trade?" I noticed his pile of supplies off in the corner. We could find use in some of what the merchant sold, with such tasks ahead.

"I only trade in souls!" Exclaimed the merchant, almost angrily. His hand tightened around his blade, and I was amazed that it didn't seem to cut him. I expected such an answer, and gave a smile.

"Of course my friend, everyone does now days. If you will let us browse your wares, ill discuss things with my companion and we shall work out a deal hmm?"  
The merchant looked a bit hesitant, but then agreed.

"Alright, but i'm watching you two! Don't think you can frisk anything off me, otherwise Yulia will have your head!"

"Fair enough," I said as I removed myself from the table. "We wouldn't dream of robbing an honest merchant."

"Good." Was the final word from the merchant, to which I smiled before heading back to where Oscar sat.

While he was sitting he had taken the liberty of lifting up his visor, and had a less than favorable look aimed at the merchant. As I approached he spoke his mind, non too quietly either.

"If he is an honest merchant, then im a knight of Carim in disguise."

Was Oscars scornful remark, and I cracked a genuine grin. I wondered if he even knew about Lautrec, or rather if Carim Knights just had a bad reputation.

"Come on Oscar, dont be like that. He might be unsavory, but his wares could be worth the while."

Oscar snorted, but stood.

"Yes, wares of high quality, robbed from corpses from here to Anor Londo itself. Yes, this is just what we are looking for."

I slapped his armored back good-naturedly, mindful of the watchful eyes of the merchant who never quit petting his sword.

"Hey, it might seem distasteful to you but I've been stuck wearing dead mans clothes and armor from the beginning! Even if it's still dead mens equipment, being able to buy it will be a welcome change from robbing the bodies myself."

"Your sense of humor is...odd my friend." Oscar shook his head,

"Odd humor, dashing looks. It's no wonder the ladies fall for me so easily. I am but a refreshing drink of water in an oasis of despair and dry tongues."

As if to prove my point, Oscar just dryly responded "Indeed."

The wares themselves were nothing particularly amazing, much like in the game. I didn't see in repair powder as the merchant sold, but I wasn't ever sure if it existed and I didn't feel like explaining myself if it didn't. I looked around for the bottomless box as well, but among the mess of crates and boxes such a task was impossible. I did find an entire freaking crate of firebombs, which made me smile like a kid at Christmas.

In the end, we had gathered a small assorted selection of items. A bag of firebombs, a bundle of arrows and quiver for me and my admittedly shitty bow skills. A shirt of chain mail to wear instead of the ratty hollow soldier armor I was currently rocking, and a pair of stronger leather gloves than what I wore. Ones that, you know, might actually save my hands if it came down to it instead of just keeping them from getting nippy.

Also, when I was sure neither Oscar nor the merchant was looking, I slipped a particular key into my pocket. I thought it might have been the residence key, one that would give us access to houses and buildings previously locked. Or so I hoped. It could have been the key to the outhouse. Id have no idea of knowing which until I tried.

The only thing Oscar selected was a small crate with a stone bowl and strange ingredients, and a satchel to carry it and our other selections in.

Merchandise in hand, we carried it back to where the Merchant sat. He was cradling Yulia in his lap now, and instructed us to lay the items upon the table so he could judge their worth. We did so, arranging them in a way it could be observed easily. The merchant looked it all over, his red eyes hawkish in their careful calculations.

After he was finished, he sat back with a smile on his face.

"Well lads, this is a very nice selection. All in all, it will cost you an even five thousand souls!"

Oscar narrowed his eyes, and I began to see the start of his anger flaring up again. but instead of trying to mediate it, I let it be. Time for price negotiations, and I could try to work the good cop bad cop routine on this guy, what with Oscar's temper.

"Five thousand souls for equipment stolen from the dead!? You must be out of your mind! Are you trying to rob the living too?"

Oscar voice was indignant, and I suppose I couldn't blame him. I didn't know what counted as a small, or large amount of souls. Well, I did game wise but we had been through that line of though already. somethings were just different. More...real I supposed.

"My equipment may be stolen, but that gives you no right to insult my prices!"

The Merchant exclaimed back,

"If you don't like the cost, feel free to find yourselves another merchant! Nee Hee Hee Hee Hee."

"Now now," I interjected, "Surely we can work out a deal of some sorts? You know there are no other merchants in the burg , but we know that we are the first customers you have had in a long time am I right?"

The Merchant shifted slightly in his seat, but answered.

"Well...maybe. The only other customer I've had in months was that crazy knight with the sun on his armor. A loony he was, but he paid good."  
He took the time to glare at me with burning red eyes.

"Paid better than you are trying to at least."

I ignore his slight in favor of the new information. A loony with the sun on his armor? He could only have been talking about Solaire. Brolaire. Badass extraordinaire. The one motherfucker who could likely pull us out of any hairy situation, and still come out praisin' the sun. If he was near, we needed to find him. Helkite Drake? Deep fried dragon. Havel? Can'o'Whooped ass. Gargoyles? Bitch please, He would rip off their tails and beat them to death with'em.

Alright, maybe I was exaggerating but Havel proved to me just how actually powerful NPC's were in the flesh. Solaire had helped me through many a tough boss, his strength was legendary. Especially if the rumor about him was true...He could be the solution to everything.

But the merchant had said months. And while I wasn't very confident in his sense of time, it made me wonder just How long had it been since Solaire had passed through here? We might have missed him, and I didn't like that thought one bit. Not with Havel, Helkite, and the bell tower Gargoyles in our way.

But back to the task at hand.

"I'm not trying to cheat you, my friend. You are short on customers, we are short on souls. Is it so maddening to suggest we work something out?"

My tone was soft, and almost pleading. He needed to think that he had the power, that he controlled the deal. If he did, he would be so much more pliable. The moment he realized he was being manipulated, he would immediately become defensive and any bargain would be lost.

"So lets start off with...perhaps three thousand souls?"

It's hard to bargain when you don't actually know how much you have, or the actual value. Still, Oscars nod of approval let me know it was more along the lines of what he was willing to pay.

"Now that, is more reasonable." Was his remark, and he crossed his arms in a satisfied way.

The merchant, obviously didn't agree, and immediately refuted my offer.

"No, no that wont do, you're trying to rob me blind! Four thousand eight hundred, and that beyond fair."

I sighed, knowing how this was going to go and deciding the hasten the process.

"But what if we don't have that much? If you're so set on your price, you might find yourself not making any souls at all. Now, you got your fine wares at no cost to yourself, anything you make is profit, is it not? Meet me in the middle, four thousand even. What say you?"

Perhaps the merchant had been haggling me, and I wasn't as good of a negotiator as I thought, because he smiled real large and said "Deal!" before thrusting out his hand. Oscar shook his head in disgust, and I had the feeling I had gotten played.

Still, a deal was a deal. I reached out my hand to shake his, but the merchant stopped me with an odd look.

"What are you doing?" He asked me in his nasally voice..

"I'm shaking on the deal." was my reply, slightly confused from his ignorance of a handshake.

"I don't care to shake on it!" The merchant said with scorn. "I want the souls!"

I was reminded of when Oscar paid Petrus for the Rite of Humanity, and nearly slapped myself in stupidity. I rightfully assumed the position id seen before, placing my palm face down above his. I did it as slowly as possible, trying to stall until I figured out how to trade the souls, or if I even had any.  
It was after a few seconds of my hand hovering there nothing occurring, did both Oscar and the merchant realize what was going on. The merchant looked at me like I was an idiot, and the look Oscar gave me...wasn't much better.

"What are you a nitwit? You don't even know how to trade souls! Nee hee hee hee, quite a moron, isn't he Yulia?"

"Rufio, are you serious? Do you truly not know how to transfer souls?"

The way they were saying it mad me angry. It wasn't my damn fault I didn't know, I didn't even come from this place! I hated not knowing things, it made me feel like a fool. The reactions of those who considered it to be 'common knowledge' never helped that feeling.

But I didn't need to get angry here. I needed to remedy the situation, and make the trade. Plus, after getting onto Oscar, loosing my temper over something this stupid would make me a hypocrite.

"No Oscar, I don't." My voice was muffled as my head was placed in my hands to hide my embarrassment. I think he caught on, and he quickly changed his manner. He placed his hand on my shoulder in an attempt at consolation. It might have helped if the merchant across from me wasn't still laughing to himself and whispering to his katana.

"Its um, rather easy actually. I could show you if you'd like." Said Oscar

"That would be nice" I responded in my still muffled voice.

"Then close your eyes, and give me your hand."

I wanted to make a joke out of that, but given his conduct when we bathed Oscar might have taken actual offense. I held my tongue, and complied. Taking my hand in his own, Oscar did...something. I'm not sure how, but I felt a tugging of sorts. Slight, barely noticeable. If I hadn't closed my eyes I wouldn't have felt it. There was no way the tugging could have taken anything, it was not nearly strong enough. But that wasn't its purpose. The tugging made me aware of something I hadn't noticed previously. Its like when you flex a muscle you didn't know you could, alien, but a part of you.

"What is it?" I asked in wonder.

"That is the combined energy of your souls, all the ones you've collected. Though id wager most of them came from the demon we faced at the asylum. Now that you can feel it, you should be able to move it."

And he was right. Now that I knew it was there, manipulating it was a cinch. I was able to bring it to my palm, and marvel at it. Souls, in their raw form. glowing, white, and burning like fire. It did bring of questions of the existential sort, like was I actually holding the souls of living, thinking humans? Or was this simply energy, old life, harvested from the dead. And if it was the former, would I simply spend them like money? Or, even worse, devour them for soul reinforcement if such a thing was possible.

"Hey, hurry up! I haven't got all day."

The Merchant broke me from my musings, and I decided such things needed to be thought upon later. Re-obsorbing my hard earned souls, I returned my attention to the merchant, and placed my hand above his. I felt the tugging, demanding a certain volume of the souls. I split the required amount, which was the majority of all I had, and passed it through my palm in a series of small burning orbs.

In a minute, it was done. The merchant was much happier, and was joyfully whispering to his Yulia about how nice it was to have a decent sale. I felt a small measure of pride at completing my first transaction in Lordran, a measure tempered by the fact that the merchant might have got the better of me. Id need to stop underestimating people especially in future dealings. Of course, this merchant was more shady than just about every one but good ol "Trusty" patches, but that wasn't the point.

I donned my new chain mail, and tossed the old hollow armor to the side with relish. Damn thing was heavy, and it itched like you wouldn't believe. Plus it smelled like rusted ass. The quiver of arrows went over my shoulder, as did my bow. The sack of firebombs was tied to my belt, and I was beginning to feel like a badass. When I told Oscar as much, he simply gave me one of those looks I was beginning to get quite often. I'm not sure if he simply didn't understand me, or, he just decided not to comment.

* * *

We had made it. Like a shining symbol of hope, the bonfire glittered in our view. It rusted pole and burning estus looked more inviting than a swimming pool filled with coca-cola and populated by supermodels. Hot ones, not the anorexic basket cases with daddy issues. In other words, it looked both delicious and arousing at the same time. I wanted to be at it right that second, and if I thought estus could regenerate limbs I would have given my left hand to be there.  
Instead, I could only look at it from afar hiding behind a fallen piece of building with Oscar. A sane man might ask, why in Gwyns name were we hiding behind a piece of rubble instead of running up to that bonfire and smearing its estus all over ourselves in a disturbing fashion. Well that would have to do with the Helkite Drake sleeping upon a building maybe twenty five yards away. Its great body heaving with every large breath, and out of its nostrils came air so hot that the area in front of its face was full of distortions.

This time there was no plan to be made, no clever way of skirting around the issue. We needed to sneak past the helkite drake and get to the bonfire without waking the lizard up. So that's what we would do.

Taking into account the small pile of charred corpses in front of the drake, we decided silence, and not speed was of the essence. That's what led us to be tiptoeing across the broiling ground barefoot. Boots in hand, we tried to move as quietly as possible. It was painful, as the stones were quite hot and the broken shards of brick cut into our soles. Somehow we managed to grit our teeth and bear through it.

Open entering the structure which housed the bonfire we immediately sat down and sipped some estus as we put our boots back on. Feet healed and boots returned to their proper place, we finally lit the bonfire. Finally had a safe place to rest before going on the the church. As Oscar lit it, I was reminded of one tiny little thing I had forgotten.

Bonfires were loud.

A loud 'whoosh' echoed in the chamber, followed by the humming that the bonfire produced. The room somehow amplified the sound, and unfortunately for us that sound had only one real exit. That exit being the way we just arrived, where the Helkite Drake was enjoying its nice little nap. Oscar swore softly, but I was quiet and listening. Hoping.

Outside I could hear a deep rumble, as well as a sliding-scratching sound of sharp scales against stone. The foundations of the burg groaned and cracked as the Helkite Drake woke from its slumber and began to move. I didn't. I just stood there, contemplating my existence and the fact that we actually woke up the fucking thing.

Oscar grabbed me roughly and began to drag me to the bonfire. I stumbled at the sudden motion, but he kept me from falling. I wasn't sure why exactly he was pulling me to the bonfire, but I didn't have a chance to ask as a mighty roar deafened us both. This was followed by heavy stomping that I couldn't hear but I felt, that also made walking more of a bitch.

The drake was coming, with steady large steps that claimed it would be upon us soon. Oscar in truth was leading me past the bonfire, and to the steps that were our only chance of escape. We needed to get up those stairs, and climb past its broken segment. If we got through quick enough, the Drake wouldn't be able to roast us alive in our unofficial oven.

Well, that's what would have happened if the drake had snaked its head in through the front like I thought it would have. No, instead it pulled an Alduin-esque move and clawed a hole in the side in which it stuck its head in.

If you didn't think there was much of a difference between dragons and drakes, this ugly motherfucker would prove you wrong. It just looked ugly. It was so asymmetrical that death the kid would have cried, which I almost did. Its burning eyes locked with mine, expressing just how much it wanted us to become kentucky fried undead. It was one mean, ugly son of a bitch. And its breath was lethal.

We turned the fuck around and sprinted to the exit like bats out of hell. An accurate simile, because the moment we turned tail the Helkite drake opened its terrifying maw and unleashed the inferno upon us. Fire nipped at my heels and singed the hair on the back of my head as I tore out of the structure and into the sunlight.

I would have kept running straight and been toasted had Oscar not slammed into me and knocked us both to the ground. A torrent of fire flowed past the point where I used to be running, but my thoughts were more focused upon the ground that was roughly introduced to my face. It knocked me silly for a moment, and Oscar had to drag me further away from the danger.

My ears were ringing, and it was only after it faded that I was able hear Oscar shouting. I wasn't sure what he was saying, but his actions told me all I needed to know. We had to fucking run. I looked back to the tower where the drake had nearly fried us to see that the drake hadn't taken too kindly to us escaping. The tower was nearly demolished, as was any trace of the bonfire it once housed. Only fire and death remained, as well as the Helkite drake even if it was a good summary of those two things.

I was curious as to how that would affect the structure of that bridge, but that curiosity was overcome by a strong desire to live. We would cross that bridge when we came to it. Pun intended. For now, running back the way we originally had come was the most important thing.

There were some issues with that plan. Havel being one of them, as he was back in this direction. Another was the lack of good places to hide. As soon as the drake took to the skies it would be upon us nigh instantaneously. Any building we could take refuge in was decidedly not drake-proofed. Even the ones made completely from stone would only become ovens once bathed in the flames. The moment it flew, we died.

But it didn't take to the air. It actually chased after us on foot, clawing its way over structures and crashing though weaker ones. It made no sense why it didn't just fly, until I saw its wing.

The bone between its shoulder and the rest of the wing, for lack of better terms the drakes bicep, was smashed. It was bent at visible angle, that even with my obviously shitty knowledge of drake anatomy I knew wasn't supposed to look like that. It had healed over, apparently being an older wound but it was clear, its wing had been broken. It didn't fly after us because the overgrown gecko couldn't.

Joyous discovery's like that are only joyous for so long though, when the object in question repeatedly breathes fire at you and you have to avoid getting cooked by ducking around yet another corner in the maze of the burg. This couldn't go on forever. The drake was indeed gaining on us. And of course, you know what they say. If you can't run, fight like your crazy. Okay, maybe that's not an actual saying but you get the picture. So I did the craziest thing I could think of. I turned and ran towards the drake.

I think Oscar shouted my name, but it was hard to tell over my battle cry. I didn't charge with my sword drawn, nor my shield raised. Instead I held in my hand the sack of firebombs and was spinning it around and around to build up momentum. If I could make sense of its fucked up face, I would have been able to tell if it was surprised or not. It wouldn't have made much of a difference, but it would have given me some satisfaction.

It did do the one gesture I had counted on, which was a wide yawn; the prelude to its fire breath. I had never been the best at throwing shit, but ill be damned if I didn't sink that sack right into the drakes open mouth.

"CHOKE ON IT BITCH!"

I screamed as the drake proceeded to do just that. Its trap snapped shut, and it threw its head back and forth like it was dancing. Then came the boom, I could actually see the breast of the drake bulge out before thick black smoke began to leak from between its teeth. It made a sound halfway between a burp and a moan, and looked as if it would fall.

I was ecstatic that it had worked, and was nearly jumping in place. Yet, the drake didn't fall. It just began shaking its head back and forth. Any giddiness I had faded piece by excruciating peace as the drake began to regain its senses. While I knew it was useless, I drew my longsword and shield before getting even closer.

I was going to try and slit its throat, or saw through it as would the case more likely be. The firebombs didn't work, and we had nothing in our arsenal effective for fighting this monster long range. This was my last resort before dying in a generally painful fashion, either being eaten or burnt to a cinder.

The scales on the Helkite drakes neck were sharper, and reminded me of a bearded dragon. Not Shen-Long but the actual lizard. The kind that existed in the world that I used to exist. I wondered if they lived in Lordran, or if this spiky abomination was the closest thing I was going to get. Its odd what you think of as your plunging a sword into a drakes neck, and even more odd what you think of as you succeed and find your mouth filled with drake blood.

Drake blood that was nearly boiling hot and seared my mouth and tongue. The small part that was swallowed burned like fire all the way down, and if my mouth wasn't full I would have cried out in pain. In my distraction and the drakes now frenzied movements, the hilt of my sword was torn from my hand. My shield that I held in my left hand saved my life, because in its motions the drake swatted me with its wing.

I was saved from being torn in half by the shield, but my arm wasn't so lucky. The pain in my throat and mouth was now amplified by my newly broken arm. It also happened to be, that the broken arm was the one I landed on when I hit the stones and rolled. The adrenaline rush I had experienced since the beginning of the encounter muted some of the pain, but not all. My vision was swimming and I was afraid I would black out from a mix of both the impact and the pain.

I finished rolling to a stop, and I had a nice view of the sky while upon my back. It was a pleasant shade of blue, filled with puffy white clouds and the smoke of the burg. The contrast was most enjoyable, and it was a nice thing to see as I began to close my eyes.

Then came lightning.

A bolt of lightning tore across the sky, bright gold and crackling. Now when I say tore across the sky, I mean to say shot across my vision not even five feet away and made my hair stand on end. Including the eyebrows. My eyes stopped wanting to shut after that, and instead were quite intent on finding out where the fuck the lightning originated.

I went to lift my head, but instead found myself being lifted up by my armpits. My legs dangled in front of me as I was being dragged to safety. My savior was Oscar, as I could tell by his voice. I couldn't hear everything he was saying, but I caught the gist of it.

"Stupid...fool...charging in...firebombs...idiot...drake...knight."

...knight?

And from the right raced past both of us a figure in odd armor. A bucket helm protected his head, adorned with a scarlet feather. a white tunic coated his torso and hid the plate underneath. What appeared to be either grass or green fur covered his shoulders, and his legs were contained in metal. His hands were bare. In one he held a shield painted brightly with an icon of the sun, and the other was raised to the heavens, lightning itself in its palm.

It was him. Salvation incarnate. At least he was to Oscar and I considering out current predicament. I couldn't speak due to the burns, but I mouthed his name with elation. Solaire. If I could stand and if there wasn't an angry bleeding drake stomping about, I would have fanboyed the fuck out.

It didn't help that my inner fanboy only found fuel for his fire as I watched what I could while Oscar drug me away. Solaire, I assume finding his lightning spear sufficiently charged, hurled that sombitch like he was a pro quarterback. It sunk deep into the drake neck before dissipating and leaving a large oozing hole. Further up on the neck was a similar wound, the leftovers from the first bolt.

The Drake roared in pain, or moved as if it was doing such. It seems the firebombs I forced it to ingest had rendered it mute. Soliare didn't miss a beat, and drew his sunlight straightsword from its scabbard before plunging it halfway into the base of the drakes neck. He didn't stop there, but instead kept running. His blade leaving a bleeding rift as Solarie ran underneath the beast and wounded it from below.

When he reached the tail he tore his sword free and with a graceful flourish cleaved the appendage from the drake which began to erupt into white motes before fading. Now off balance, the drake stumbled and landed forward onto its stomach and the gaping wound.

Oscar had stopped dragging me, also in awe at what was occurring. It seemed neither one of us were in danger, Solaire had effectively handicapped our opponent in less than a minute and he wasn't done yet. While quick, there was a certain casualness in his motions as Solaire walked around from the rear of the beast and cut both the tendons in its meaty leg and tough wing. It wasn't carelessness, but a relaxation that shows when someone is doing something they are at home with. Solaire was a man at home in combat. Motherfucker probably knew death on a first name basis.

The final blow was swift and clean. Solaire had made his way around the drake before coming to its long neck and prone head. He wasted no time, didn't place his hand upon the dying beast to comfort it, didn't shout triumphantly and praise the sun. He simply sunk his straight sword into the back of the beasts head, and ended its life.

The Helkite Drake had been slain.

Oscar and I stared, that's all we could do. I knew I was quite a few levels below Oscar, but Solaire was obviously in a tier all of his own. Seeing him slay the drake was both mind-blowing impressive and crippling humbling. Sure I had gotten in a blow, and my fire bombs helped, but for the most part Solaire had single-handedly murdered the fuck out of it.

As we watched Solaire free his blade from the drakes corpse, Oscar laid me upon the ground and fumbled about until he found his estus flask. He took a knee, and held up my head with one hand before pouring estus into my waiting mouth. Lovely, healing heat entered my throat before spreading to the rest of me. My throat and mouth were near instantly restored, and my arm was repaired in short order. I closed my mouth after feeling my arm healed, deciding that saving the estus was more prudent that healing the rest of my minor aches and pains. I doubted the bonfire had survived the drakes earlier outburst, so we had no place to refill the flask.

Oscar pulled the flask back and stowed it away as I got up. In front of the cooling Drake corpse was Solaire, who had begun a slow walk to where we stood. I wasn't scared but I would be lying if I said I wasn't intimidated.

No when I say slow walk, I meant walk. Nothing about his steps were hurried, or showed any inclination of hurrying. He had all the time in the world, and knew it too. That's not to say that he was wasting it, as every step appeared to be measured. A steady pace, a simple gait that was leading him to us.

"Hes testing us."

Oscars whisper threw me, until I caught onto his meaning. The slow walk was allowing Solaire to get an Idea of...something. I wasn't sure what it was, but Oscar was right. His pace was much more calculated than I thought. I went to stand, and Oscar tried to help but I pushed him off telling him I didn't need assistance. I might have been a Lie, but If Solaire was measuring us, it wasn't in my best interest to appear weak.

Oscar and I stood side by side, and faced off against the approaching warrior of sunlight. The knight gave nothing away from neither his body language, nor his face that was hidden from view by the bucket helmet he wore. I was able to tell though through his armor that he was fucking ripped. His broad shoulders supported two beastly arms, with biceps bulging from the chain mail and forearms like Iron. It seemed like all day was not upper body day for him, no sir. As his thighs were just as muscular. It wasn't the overbearing muscle of a body builder, but the solid thick muscle of practicality.

He stopped about ten feet from us, and reached to his head. He removed his helmet, and I was given my first glimpse of the face of Knight Solaire of Astora...

* * *

Im actually getting kind of pissed that the fanfiction editor deletes the chapter break lines I put in and forces me to use its line if I want to show a separation. Its not a big deal, but right now its irking the shit out of me.

Anyway WELCOME TO THE END OF THE CHAPTER. Things are getting interesting, no? Havel is out an about, the Hekite drake has just bit the dust, and Solaire has entered into the picture. It can only get better from here. Well, better for me as a writer and you as the readers. For Rufio and Oscar, shits gonna get even crazier.

Like last time, would you kindly leave a review before leaving? The reviews motivate me to write more, as it gives me a direct connection with my readers. I get to see what your thoughts and feelings are on this drivel I call literature, and perhaps learn from it to better improve my style in the future. To everyone who does review, yall are awesomesauce on a plate of awesome. To all my readers, yall are still awesome, just slightly less than the others. Also, one last thing on reviews. If your a guest and decided to review, just come up with a name and stick to it. Itll make it easier for me to respond in the next chapters authors note if I have something to call you other than "Guest Number (Insert random number here)." Allright, my bitching and praising is done.

NEXT TIME ON SOUL OF A HERO: The word of a knight, can he be trusted? Has Havel given up the chase? Will the gargoyles be the death of Rufio? OH SHIT VELKA KNOWS.

All this and more in chapter 4: Book of the Guilty


	4. Book of the Guilty

Maaaan fuck me and fuck this chapter, It just kept going and going and going. The writing of it was fine, and enjoyable as always. But proofreading is a bitch, especially when halfway through my computer decided to give me the middle finger and undo all my work. If you think chapters have issues when you read them, you should see what they look like before I comb through them. Two words. Grammatically fucked.

Thats enough of a rant for now, hello all my dear readers! In the time its taken me to write this 15k chapter, i've reached 435 views! whether or not that seems a lot to yall, its a big number to me and I just wanna say thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read it. I really do appreciate it.

So time as always, to answer the reviews. Chapter three didn't get as many as I was hoping for, but maybe this chapter can tease the questions and thoughts out of yall. Because as you will see, action and intrigue awaits.

Without further ado, the responses.

To JPVE: Twas enough indeed, thy audacity shall not go unmarked. When it comes to your question, I think the chapter shall suffice as an answer, even if only a temporary one. Im guessing you watch OnlyAfro's videos?

To Godrik55: Oh you have no idea, I have such big plans for him...hehehe

To BadOrk11: Im glad your enjoying it. To answer your question, Rufio is going to try to get as many people as possible because there is strength in numbers. That doesnt mean its always going to work out though, because what he once knew as characters are now real people, with thoughts, emotions and desires. Not everyone will want to join, or feel the need too. Others might look upon his 'leadership' with less favorable thoughts. As to covenants I don't think so. He knows better than to tie himself to any deity or being in Lordran, but he still might end up working with some. Finally to your last question...we will see.

To Abyss Phantom: Understandable, your reasons do make sense. I just never found it in me to hate the guy. Sure his actions are deplorable, but he could just well be mentally unbalanced. Plus, keep in mind his relationship with Ornstein, the captain of the four knights that Smough wished to join, but was turned down because he had...odd dietary habits. Ornstein could also be Smoughs 'jailer' as Smough is weak to lightning, and Smough just took the opportunity to free himself when pikachu went down. I have been watching the lore videos actually. Vatividya's as well as Silver Mont's, and Davecontrollive's, just so im sure I have a good grasp of characters and details I might have missed on my own. You are right about Havel. But the drakes tail is another matter.

DragonBlade00: Actually Havel didnt get out on his own. It was the raging drake that broke open the tower, and let him free. Im sure he might have broken the door down eventually, but with no stimulation down there he would have had no real reason to try to escape.

Allright, thats it for now folks. I'll see you at the end of the chapter! Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 4: Book of the Guilty

He was actually rather handsome. A gentle smile, blue eyes, blonde hair neatly brushed back. He was epitome of what one would expect from a heroic knight. I would almost use the word 'dashing' to sum him up. Almost, because his face was kinda grimy and his armor had defiantly seen cleaner days.

So he wasnt exactly a knight in shining armor, sue me.

The most important feature to note, was that gentle smile. It was genuine, reaching his eyes and made everything a little brighter. That smile was important because it meant he wasn't about to liberally wreck our shit. At least, I hoped it meant that. He could have been smiling because he was about to beat a motherfucker with a motherfucker. If that was the case, the only hope I would have would be that he would finish quick.

Still, I decided to give Solaire the benefit of the doubt and smiled in return. He was the closest thing this game had to a true hero, and we desperately needed one. Oscar might have been thinking the same thing, as he removed his helmet as well and offered Solaire a beaming smile. Another knight must have had him in high spirits, of course that knight slaying the fuck out of the drake could have been the reason as well.

"Hello there friends! It's good to see that you are in one piece. I was almost afraid that I had intervened too late, when I saw you hit the ground. I am happy that is not the case!"

Spoke Solaire, and he chased it down with a healthy helping of that awkward laugh of his. It wasnt awkward so much as the sound, nor by the timing as im sure he indeed meant it. It just was, and left an awkward silence to follow. A short-lived awkward silence, as Oscar killed swiftly.

"Ha ha yes, indeed it was and we thank you for it Sir Knight. That drake was beyond us, it was fortunate you arrived as you did."

Solaire nodded, accepting the praise graciously.

"Think nothing of it my friends, it was my pleasure. Now I believe introductions are in order. I am Knight Solaire of Astora, adherent to the Lord of sunlight. Who might you two be, courageous enough to adventure in the burg."

Oscars eyes lit up when Solaire mentioned his distant home.

"Another Knight from Astora! Good fortune indeed! I am Oscar, and I too hail from Astora. Arendale to be precise."

Solaire's smile grew bigger as he listened to Oscars introduction, and looked as if he wanted to comment but waited and faced me instead. Waiting for me to say my part. When his eyes landed upon me I felt as if I was in the spotlight. I swallowed the lump in my throat, and spoke.

"And I am Rufio, Sir Solaire, and I hail from parts unknown."

He looked perplexed, and called me out on my strange answer.

"Parts unknown? You cannot remember?"

Oscar stepped in for me here, to which I was kind of relieved and kind of annoyed.

"My friend was slipping into hollowness not too long ago. We restored his humanity, but some damage was done. His home, and his original name were lost to him."

This seemed to strike a chord within Solaire, as his gaze got distant. It only lasted a moment, but I caught it. I didn't mention it though.

"That is truly tragic Rufio, you have my condolences."

"Eh, It is what it is. Could definitely be worse. I could be hollow, or inside of a drakes stomach right now."

Solaire laughed again, and Oscar chuckled nervously. Too soon?

"This is true, it can always be worse. But we should never despair, as the sun shines on us all. In times of hardship, and in times of fortune it watches over us like a magnificent father! Ah, if only I could be so grossly incandescent..."

Solaire trailed off and while I knew of his eccentricities Oscar was slightly put off. I couldn't blame him, to the unprepared Solaire was only a few short steps away from a padded room.

"Aha, erm yes. Of course." Was Oscars brilliant recovery, before he continued.

"So Solaire, what brings you to the burg? Rufio and I were on our way to the Parish Church, to ring the bell of awakening. I believe I speak for both of us when I ask of you to join our pilgrimage. Your skill would be a phenomenal assistance to our endeavor."

He wasnt lying, I did agree whole heartedly.

"What say you Knight Solaire? Would you join two humble warriors in some jolly cooperation?"

I was hoping that dropping that phrase might have an effect on Solaire's willingness to help us. I didn't think he would decline in the first place, but adding something extra never hurt.

It did seem like my hunch was right on the money, because upon hearing the phrase his grin turned into a full blown toothy smile.

"Of course my friends! It is my duty as a Warrior of Sunlight to help those in need, and I certainly don't mind assisting a kinsman of Astora, and his interesting companion!"

His enthusiastic response lightened the air for both me and Oscar. With Solaire on our side, not much in the burg nor the parish could give us trouble. Solaire did have one condition though, he needed to stop by the merchant we had met earlier to pick up some supplies. Neither of us saw any issue with that. What was one delay if promised the help of Knight Solaire? Course in mind we returned back the way we came.

Before we left though, I did send what I hoped to be a nonchalant look to the cooling corpse of the drake. Its severed tail in particular which I saw had begun to disintegrate. Where the tale used to be, I didn't see the drake sword which left me disappointed. Having that blade would have made things even easier. Cant get em all I suppose.

We were quiet as we walked, save for near the beginning when we explained to Solaire the reasoning for our silence. That reason being Havel. We didn't have to say much more than the name for Solaire to get the picture. He knew of Havel, and of his hollowed state, but was unaware of his presence in the burg. Once made aware, he was significantly more serious and we made our way undetected to the merchant.

Things were not as we left them however.

The door to the Undead Merchants lair was smashed in, and part of the wall was as well. The inside wasn't much better. The table was splinters, and the crates of supplies were either destroyed or emptied. Their contents scattered about. We found the body of the merchant in the corner.

Calling it a body was inaccurate however. Remains would be a much better term. There wasnt much of his body left intact but his arm. The rest was mashed into a sticky red paste that made me sick and i went alone in the corner to vomit. Oscar wasnt fairing much better, but at least he managed to keep his bile in his stomach. Solaire was the only one of us who seemed unaffected by the gore displayed, and even crouched to inspect it further.

I didnt need to be closer to see what happened here. It was painfully obvious. Havel had found the merchant, and did what he did best to other undead. Crush them with that damn club of his.

I felt sick though not only because of the gore, but because of the death. It wasnt like the hollow I killed with Oscars help, nor the demon at the Asylum. The merchant had been a living, thinking being. One I had spoke to, and done business with. A couple of hours ago he was alive and kicking, and now all that was left of his was an arm and some goo. It was horrifying on a deep level, and I was on the verge of hyperventilating.

"If what you told me earlier was true, this could only be the work of Havel. He might still be around here. Gather what you can, our friend has no more use of it. We should leave as soon as we can."

Solaire words calmed me. This wasn't a time for panicking. It was never a time for panicking. panicking lead to death and despair and other unsavory things. Oscar then patted my back as I recovered from my vomiting which wasn't rather helpful but I appreciated the gesture.

Then we began the looting of the building. Gathering up large sacks, we took whatever might have been of use. That included the rest of the crate of firebombs, which I was quite happy to obtain. I did feel kinda bad that I was happy about having the firebombs, considering that I was only getting them because the merchant was dead.

I didn't understand why the death was bothering me so much, because the feeling persisted the entire time we were pillaging. It was more than just the death of an acquaintance. There was something deeper to it. I had almost grasped it when I came across an interesting find.

It was the merchants other arm. I shuddered to think of the force Havel must have applied to send it flying across the room. What was right by the arm, was the important thing. The Uchigatana laid upon the stone floor. Its normally pristine blade was dyed red near the tip. It seemed that the merchant had managed to score a hit in, before Havel killed him.

I went to go pick it up, and when my fingers touched the hilt I swear I heard what sounded like a crying child. It only lingered for a moment, but it was freaky. Once the strangeness had passed, I picked up the blade to admire it better. It was a katana, good and simple. Elegantly curved was its blade, and its round guard had a small inlay that I couldn't read. It was either in a language I didn't know, or had faded with time.

What I did know, was that it sat rather nicely in my hand. That, and that I would need to find its scabbard if I wished to take it with me. I could of course, tote it around without one. But that would be dangerous, as being the idiot that I was I would unwittingly cut myself eventually.

Finding the scabbard was easy enough, as it was lying underneath some debris. Aside from being scuffed it was little the worse for wear. I unhooked my broadsword from my belt, and replaced it with the uchigatana scabbard before sheathing it. I was happy with the trade-off, as the lighter sword was better suited to my tastes. I was no tank, that was more of Oscars domain.

My actions did not go unnoticed by my companions.

"Rufio, is that the merchants sword?"

Oscars tone wasn't accusatory, but I took it as such. The denial was immediate and reactionary.

"Maybe..."

Said I, as I angled my body to make the sheathed blade less visible.

"Drat. And I had hoped to find it first."

Oscar sounded defeated. I didn't realize he had been searching for it in, but when we first visited he had seemed fascinated by it so it was no real surprise. When he accused me I thought he was upset that I would steal from the dead, which made no sense as I had been doing so far was stealing from the dead. I would have offered it to him, just to be nice, but he had all the nice shit anyway. He would live without this sword.

"Too late my friend, finders keepers!"

I tried not to sound too chipper about it. Honest. Solaire didn't seem to comment on the whole affair, as he was more focused on getting everything together.  
Eventually we had three large sacks filled with useful shit. Solaire took the heaviest of the three, while I took the lightest. I was going to take the second heaviest, but Oscar had stopped me and said he should be the one to carry it. It stung my pride a bit, that he thought I was unable to carry it, but I conceded that he was probably right. I wasn't by far the strongest.

So bulging sacks in hand, and no not those sacks we left the merchant after covering what was left of him with scattered stone. Outside though, someone had been waiting for us. Someone who jumped down from the roof and nearly crushed Solaire, who barely managed to drop his shit and roll at the last second. Someone who was now standing not a foot in front of me.

That someone of course, was Havel.

With him being that close to me, there wasnt much I could do before he would turn around and end me. So I kicked him. I was hoping for more than pain shooting up my leg as my body realised I just kicked pure rock. Havel didnt seem bothered by it, but his helmet did turn with a deliberate slowness that seemed to cry out 'ya dun goofed'.

Thank god that's when Solaire grabbed Havel underneath his stone shoulder pads. He didn't just pull Havel away though, no Solaire went full luchador. He fell back, planted his feet firmly into the now falling Havel's midsection, and fucking pushed. My jaw dropped as I watched Havel get lifted over Solaire, and fucking donkey kicked upside down and sent flying. The amount of strength that it must have taken to accomplish such a move was mind boggling, and keyed me into just how strong Solaire must have been. Could he truly be on par with Havel?

Solaire finished his move with a graceful roll to his feet. Across the street, Havel was picking himself up where he had landed. Solaire drew his sunlight straight sword and began to cautiously walk to him.

"Solaire, how can we help?!" Shouted Oscar as he dropped his sack and drew his sword. I drew the uchigatana as well. We may not have been as good as Solaire but we could still fight. Plus perhaps the Uchigatana wanted a chance of revenge for its old master.

"Stay back! You will only get in the way."

Solaire's response was rather cold, and his voice was even. It hurt a little bit to hear him say that, but he was probably right. I wasnt sure where we should go though, back into the building?

Oscar answered that for me though, we he grabbed my arm and said,

"To the roof, we can watch in safety from there."

I nodded my assent. Before we ran back into the building, he made sure to grab Solaire's sack and drug it behind him into relative safety. He began rustling through it, looking for something.

"Rufio, get the firebombs, I have a plan."

I think I was begging to catch on to Oscar's idea, and reached into my own bag to grab an armful of firebombs. I didnt wait to see what Oscar was grabbing. I hurried to the roof. Eager and nervous to watch the clash of the titans that was about to occur. While my faith in Solaire was nearly absolute, there was a twinge of fear for his safety. Havel was no pushover. And just one hit from his dragons tooth would be fatal.

I arrived upon the roof just in time to see it begin. Oscar wasnt far behind, and in his hands he held a large crossbow, to which he had already loaded. He got himself into what I would call a snipers position, and waited.

Below, Solaire was slowly approaching Havel who by this point was on his feet. They squared off, archbishop versus Sunlight Warrior. A tumbleweed would not have been out of place, as it reminded me of an old western duel.

Havel struck first, swinging with that massive club of his in a downward stroke. Solaire dodged to the side, and slashed. Havel managed to pull the club up just quick enough to block it, and Solaire was forced back to avoid another of Havel's devastating swings.

Once some distance had been formed between them, Havel took a moment to remove his giant shield off of his back. Solaire tried to rush him while his guard was down, but Havel dropped his shield and swung the dragons tooth is a massive arc. Solaire had no time to dodge it, and had to raise his own shield to block. I was amazed that the wood and mental didn't buckle underneath the force, but Solaire was thrown to the side. Before he hit the ground, he manged to turn it into a roll and sprung back to his feet.

Now it was Solaires turn to use the distance to his advantage. While Havel was picking up his shield, the entire time having his eyes locked onto Solaire, who then sheathed his sword and lifted his hand to the heavens. Golden light coalesced around his palm and elongated to form a spear of crackling lightning. Solaire Cocked his arm back, and threw it like he was an olympian.

The spear raced across the distance and slammed into Havel's chest sending arcing bolts of electricity coursing though him. However it seemed Havel was mostly unphased, as his rock armor was not the greatest conductor of electricity. It was marred though, as the part of the breastplate that had been struck was slightly melted and deformed just from the heat of the bolt.

Despite not doing much damage the lightning spear did serve another purpose. The momentary shock kept Havel from picking up his shield, allowing Solaire to charge in and thrust his sword straight into Havel's hip. This wouldn't have been so effective, if Solaire hadn't have aimed at one of the few tiny gaps in the armor. His blade sunk in only a few inches, but id bet that those few inches hurt.

Havel agreed, and howled before backhanding Soliare's helmet and knocking him silly. Thankfully Solaire didn't let go of his sword, and it was pulled out with a wet sound that we could hear from our perch. Before Solaire could get his bearings, Havel swung his club and caught Solaire in the side. As Solaire was knocked from his feet again, I felt cold. That was a hell of a hit, and I wasn't sure the Knight had even survived it.

From his place on the ground, Solaire began to try and stand. Havel approached his opponent with a furious pace. He was mad, and ready to end it.

"Rufio get ready to throw those firebombs."

Oscar instructed as he lifted his crossbow to eye level. As he lined up his shot, I pulled the tab on the firebomb I was holding which seemed to arm it.

Havel stood above the struggling Solaire and raised his club for the killing blow, it was now or never. Oscar let the bolt fly, and it turns out he was a decent marksman as the bolt hit the back of Havel's head. I could only hope my aim was as true as I hurled the firebomb just as Havel turned around to see what had the audacity to shoot him in the back of the head.

Just in time to get hit face first by a fucking flying firebomb.

Now im sure that his helmet protected him slightly from the main impact, but all those vertical slits had to have let in some of that fiery goop. Any of that was not let in dripped down his armor and into the cracks, turning his stone amour into an deathtrap.

Havel began to yell and flail about in agony, desperately trying to claw the fire from his eyes and skin. It was undead his armor though, and thus beyond his reach. His screams grew louder and louder in intensity, and it was disturbing to hear such sounds coming from a human throat.

The flailing gave Solaire enough time to stand, and upon shaky legs he drew himself into a stance. Sword raised above his head. He waited for only a moment, perhaps for the right angle, before chopping down and severing Havel's left arm at the elbow. The arm hit the ground with a crack, and Havel's cries rose in pitch.

Havel had dropped his club when the firebomb first his him, and with his free right hand he turned around and decked Solaire, knocking him back on his ass. Still on fire, and now missing an arm, Havel forsook taking up his shield and snatched his dragons tooth up before spiriting away. Oscar had another bolt notched and ready to fire, but it was of no use as Havel ran towards the closest edge and jumped off.

"...Did he just kill himself?"

I asked out loud, my tone full of incredulity. Oscar seemed to be just as lost for words.

"I...I have no idea Rufio."

Solaire groaned from below us.

"My friends, I think I am in need of some assistance."

His voice was laced with muffled pain. Oscar and I sprinted down to street level in order to help him.

It seemed that Havel had broken Solaire's ribs, not all but most on the side he had been hit. His arm was also lightly fractured from when he blocked. I was very glad I hadn't drank so much of the estus earlier, as it took all that we had left just to heal Solaire's ribs. His arm though, was still wounded. It wasnt useless, but would make blocking a hell of a bitch.

After Solaire had healed, I asked the question everyone was thinking.

"Sooo...is he dead? He was pretty fucked up before he jumped. shouldnt the fall finish him off?"

Solaire wiped his mouth, which I thought was kinda pointless because estus didn't leave any residue, and killed my hope.

"No, Havel is not dead. If the fall had killed him, we would have felt the souls empower us. Im afraid that he is still alive. Severely wounded, but alive."

Oscar muttered some sort of obscenity and I felt my face fall. That was not what I wanted to hear at all. Solaire took note of our demeanor, and tried to cheer us up.

"My friends, why look so glum? We won! Our foe might not be dead, but he was defeated, and wouldn't be so if you two had not intervened. He will think twice before coming after us again, no? Especially in his state! Here, I have something for you two."

His words worked into lifting our spirits, but his last sentence confused us. It was only when a shining, warm light erupted from his palm. When the light receded, two golden medallions were left. Oscar and I both gasped, and Solaire just motioned for us to take them.

We did, each grabbing one and holding it close. I was in awe because I was holding an actual sunlight medal. Its warmth bled through my glove, and it was slightly heavy. Oscar was in awe for a different reason.

"How did you summon this? I've never seen any sorcery like that!"

He asked, examining it closely. I wouldn't have taken him to be the scholarly type, but then again It was pretty cool. Solaire, as was his custom, just laughed.

"It is no sorcery my friend, but a miracle passed down to the warriors of sunlight. Whenever we engage in jolly cooperation,"

He paused and winked at me there,

"and complete a goal with our compatriots, we are allowed to summon these medals as awards, so to speak. They are made with sunlight itself."

Sunlight itself...the statement was insane. I would have doubted it if I was anywhere else but in Lodran. Especially since he just formed them from nothing in his palm. I always did wonder how sunbro's got those medals. I doubted they just carried around a bag full of them just to toss around like party favors.

"So you can just summon as many these as you want? Cool."

I was tossing mine up and catching it. The sunlight medal was bigger than a normal coin, and thicker too. It fit in your palm, about two inches in diameter. On one side was a raised icon of the sun, in the same design as the one on Solaire's armor. On the back was inscribed some sort or calligraphy. The symbols were very different from those on the uchigatana guard. More archaic, more arcane, more systematic in the pattern they were placed.

Soliare shook his head.

"Not exactly Rufio. Only once a sense of achievement is felt. A strong one, the kind a warrior feels after a hard earned victory. Afterwards the medallions make it known they are ready to be called."

He was watching my tossing of the medal with bemusement.

"The ARE considered a badge of ultimate honor. You could do to be more careful with it."

"Eh, it'll be fine. Its not like ill drop it or- SHIT!"

The medal flew from my finger tips and bounced off the ground with a melodic tinkle. I managed to recover it before it got far, but my dignity wasn't so easily saved from Oscar and Solaire's laughter.

"You were saying, Rufio?"

Oscars tone was full of mirth, which was understandable but no less embarrassing. However I was able to easily ignore it, as I was right in front of Havel's severed arm. It must have rolled away from Solaire after being removed from its previous owner. Placing the sunlight medal in my pocket, right next to that doll which I still wasn't sure why I was carrying it around, I used both hands to pick up the arm.

It was rather gross, as it was still leaking blood from the open end. It was also heavy, but that was to be expected. The chains that held the stone in place dangled and clinked, as I turned it around in examination. I found it ironic that all we had left of the merchant was his arms, and now we had the arm of his murderer.

"Rufio, what did you find?"

Asked Oscar. I turned to show them the gruesome trophy. Oscar grimaced when he saw it, and Solaire was impassive.

"Our spoils of war, anyone need a hand?"

Was my joking response, before I tilted the arm so that the blood would begin to drain. When the red liquid hit the ground, it began to splatter more than I thought. I quickly held it upright, to avoid getting blood on my pants.

"That is disgusting, put it down Rufio."

"I concur with Oscar. You should leave it where it lies."

I waved it around slightly before speaking.

"Yeah yeah I will in a second, I want to check something."

Oscar looked dubious.

"What in Gwyn's name would you want to check with a severed arm."

I took off my glove to have better dexterity, and reached into the crevices around the arm. Oscar stayed disgusted, but not Solaire looked mildly curious. It was sick work, worming my fingers around the dying flesh of the arm. It wasn't easy either, because the blood made everything slick. I did succeed after some effort, and pulled Havel's arm free of the gauntlet with a wet schlick.

In my left hand was the gauntlet, and in my right I held Havel's arm. It was pale, dirty, and bleeding but that wasn't what was important. What was important was the crested ring upon the forefinger.

"So this was the right arm..."

Right as in the one with the ring, as this actually was Havel's left arm but that's not the point. I tossed the gauntlet to Oscar with a shout of "Catch!" and he fumbled to grab it. Holding the arm firmly, I grabbed hold of the ring and worked it off the finger. The blood was to my advantage at this point, as the ring was stuck to the finger. Most likely it hadn't been taken off in years, and was almost fused to Havel's flesh.

Once I had it free, I walked over to the edge and tossed the arm over the same drop that Havel had leaped. Asshole could have it back, I got what I wanted from it. Wiping the blood and small bits of flesh off, I lifted it to the sun to see it better.

It was, of course, Havel's ring. Supposedly, if this ring was enchanted in the way it was in the game, it would make any load we carried lighter. That was of course, if it was actually enchanted. There was only one way to test that.

Before I could put it on, Solaire actually stopped me, concern on his face. He didn't physically grab my arm, but he moved closer and held his hand out, to stop me if I went further.

"Rufio, what is that ring, and how did you know it was there?"

His voice was low, and had an edge to it. I didn't know what was wrong, until I thought about how the situation must have looked to him. With me just picking up the arm, and knowing that the ring was there.

Solaire might think the ring could be cursed. That it could be the thing that drove Havel mad, and was now searching for a new owner. How else could he explain me finding it, and my eagerness to wear it? While it sounded wild, I had not other explanation as to why he would get so serious. I had to diffuse this quickly, otherwise he might do something for my own good, and that never ended well for anyone.

I tried to be relaxed as I lowered my hands, and kept them apart. Oscar made eye contact with me, and motioned to the dagger on his belt.. He was behind Solaire, and was letting me know that if needed he could take him down, if things got hairy. I shook my head no, and felt a warmth in my chest. Oscar saw me as his friend, and was willing to take out our savior to protect me. It was odd that such a violent gesture touched me so, but it did.

It was unnecessary though, as I had an easy explanation to give to the knight.

"Solaire, are you familiar with all the legends of Havel?"

"Somewhat yes. When I was being trained as a knight, my mentor made sure to cover history."

I nodded, this was good. I could work with this.

"So you know how Havel had a leigon of Clerics underneath his command? These warrior clerics wore stone armor like Havel's, as well as a ring. This ring was enchanted to lighten their burdens."

I brandished the ring and held it out to Solaire.

"I think this ring is one of those rings."

Solaire took it from me, and looked thoughtful as he examined it. Oscar piped up from behind him.

"Does that mean the hollow we faced wasn't Havel, but one of his warriors?"

I shrugged, honestly not knowing the answer. From what I remembered of the lore, that was still in debate.

"I have no idea, but from how easily he wielded his club I think it was the real deal. He might have worn the ring as a symbol, or maybe it assisted him. I don't know."

Solaire looked me dead in the eyes, and asked me in a cautious voice.

"Rufio, are you absolutely certain, that is what this ring does?"

"Reasonably sure. I was going to put it on to test it. If I am right, and it is Havel's ring, it will help out a bunch. With your arm messed up, you cant carry nearly as much. Oscar and I will need to pick up the slack."

He digested my words, and turned the ring over in his hand a few times. Finally, he relented and handed it back to me. I tried not to appear over eager as I took it, as it might make my story seem like bullshit. Oscar seemed to relax from where he was behind Solaire, pacified by Solaire relinquishing the ring. Still, his eyes were boring into the back of Solaire's head.

Oscar it seemed, had some issues with his temper. While it had so far never been directed at me, I had taken note of it. How he had reacted to the crestfallen warrior I had passed of as just being irate from the ride in the crows talons. But then dealings with the merchant, and just now with how quickly he was ready to off Solaire indicated to a deeper problem. I wondered if it was something he always had, or rather, it was a lasting scar from when he was closer to hollowfication.

That was another problem for another time. For the moment, his anger was protective of me, and I could let that slide. Id bring it up with him later, if we could find a time when shit wasn't happening. Right now, the ring.

There wasn't a flash of light, or a snap or any kind of fanfare when I slipped the ring on. I would say I had been expecting some, but I wouldn't have been surprised if some had happened either. It just slid on without a hitch.

At once my whole body felt lighter. Not the flesh itself, but lighter as in the weight from my armor and weapons didn't feel nearly as heavy as they did earlier. It was jarring, to say the least.

Solaire noticed this and moved to take the ring, but I lifted a hand to stop him.

"I'm fine. The difference was just sudden, that's all."

I even took the ring back off to make a point. The moment it left my finger, everything the weight hit me again with a slight impact. I had to steady myself so I wouldn't fall on my ass. I managed to keep upright, and handed the ring off to Solaire.

"Try it. See what I mean. Be careful though, when you take it off all the weight hits you at once."

As Solaire slipped it on, I began to think of how the ring was enchanted. Was it making me stronger to carry the weight better, or was it simply making everything I carried lighter? Either way it worked and would be an invaluable asset.

"By the gods!"

Solaire voice was full of awe, which I found funny. Man could toss lightning around like its nobodies business, but a ring that made shit lighter astonished him. I chuckled out loud. Solaire walked around, getting a feel for it. After a minute he took of the ring, but unlike me had no trouble supporting himself.

"It was like I wasn't even wearing my armor at all! Such a creation is truly astounding. I'm glad you knew those old tales Rufio, this ring will be quite handy."  
He went to hand it back to me, but I pushed it away and pointed to Oscar.

"Out of all of us, you need it the most."

"Me?" Asked Oscar.

"Yeah you. Your armor is the heaviest out of all of ours, and you haven't had the training Solaire has. Plus, you have more to carry than I do. It makes sense for you to wear it."

Solaire turned and handed it to Oscar, who took it hesitantly.

"Are you sure Rufio? Out of all of us, you have the least experience with armor. Mine may be heavy but I can move well enough in it."

I waved off his reasoning. Yes, I would love to have the damn ring. It would make my life insanely easier, and also would likely extend it. However it was better off with Oscar. If he was willing to attack Solaire just to keep anything from happening, I could part with a ring if it would ease his burden. Pun intended.

Did I tell him all that? Hell no. Instead I said in a joking way,

"Ill be fine. Look at it this way, I got a shiny gently used sword, and you get a shiny gently used ring. Now we are even Steven! Plus if I had the ring, then I would have to carry Solaire's shit. That's your job now buddy."

Oscar smiled, and took a moment to remove his gauntlet so he could equip his new ring. While he was doing so, Solaire and I went into the building to drag out the three burlap sacks of supplies. It didn't take us long, and by the time they were out Oscar was still fumbling with his gauntlet. I walked over and offered my help. He graciously accepted it, and showed me where to unlatch a particularly irritating clip.

He slipped on the ring, and it once stood up straighter. His elite knight armor obviously wasn't the lightest thing in the world, and he began to move about, marveling at the feel.

"This is amazing!"

He looked at me, true gratitude written on his face. I wasn't sure how to respond, and so I just looked away. Hoping that the heat I felt on my face wasnt visible as a blush. How often do you get thanked so sincerely? I guess what they say is right. The very best gifts are the things you want for yourself. Aint I just a paragon of unselfish virtue?

While we were having that exchange, Solaire had been redistributing the weight between the three sacks. Oscar had the heaviest now, while the burden Solaire and I carried was about even. Oscars though was the majority of the weight, but he lifted it with relative ease. Solaire must have had a good idea of how much that ring helped, because Oscar claimed it was about as heavy as it was the first time, despite being twice as full.

* * *

The rest of our trip through the burg was uneventful. We passed back by the cooling corpse of the drake, and I was still disappointed that there was no sword to be found where its tail used to lie. There were a handful of scattered scales, and I picked up the one that looked the most intact, and placed it in my rapidly filling pocket.

We did stop by the bonfire building, and I was right in my earlier assumption. It was fucking trashed, and what was once the bonfire was not scattered through the room. The metal spike that served as it center reduced to a pile of slag. With nothing there for us, we moved on. Mindful of our complete lack of estus. I did start humming 'dem bones' after kicking a what seemed to be half of a hip as we left.

We passed a few houses, went through a couple. Sometimes rubble from where the drake had been made us go around. The black knight wasn't down the corridor, and I didn't feel like making up an excuse to go and check to see if the blue tearstone ring was there. It might have been useful, but it probably wasn't their to begin with.

The bottom of the bridge tower was torn wide open in a long gash, and the destroyed doors confirmed my theory that the drake had accidentally released Havel. The lizard had payed for it though with its ability to fly. Served it right. The stairs thankfully were mostly still intact, and we climbed them to the bridge that once was home to the Taurus Demon. We crossed it with no issues, which made me wonder where exactly it went.

The second bridge, commonly known as 'the fucking bridge where the goddamn dragon roasts your balls' was also clear, as the drake was previously slain. That didn't stop my spine from tingling the whole way, and I had to fight the urge to run like hell. The bridge held one to many painful memories of agonizing fiery death for me to be comfortable crossing it.

Crossing it was worth it though, because at its end was a very welcome sight. A bonfire. A beautiful, bone strewn, rusty spiked bonfire. It wasn't lit, but would soon be and would give us a full package of that lovely estus that made everything better.

We entered the room, and Solaire immediately dropped his sack by the unlit bonfire and stepped out to the right, where I knew the sunlight altar laid. Oscar watch him in confusion, but I didn't bother explaining to him something I shouldn't know. Instead, I went over to the bonfire and lit it the way I knew how.  
Nothing.

I did a double take, and tried again. I thrust my hand forward, the one with the darksign on the back of it, and willed the damn bonfire to life.  
Still nothing.

That's when I began to get worried.

"...Oscar."

My voice was higher than I wanted it, with a hint of panic creeping in around the corners. He had been dragging the bags over to the side, and came back looking at my inquisitively.

"Yes Rufio, whats the matter? And why isn't the bonfire lit."

"The bonfire is the matter. It wont light."

"What do you mean, it wont light? Step aside, let me give it a try."

I moved out of the way so Oscar to try his hand at lighting it. I was trying to fight down the rising anxiety coming to surface. We needed that bonfire. If we didn't have it, Solaire couldn't heal his arm and if Solaire couldn't heal his arm, our best fighter was handicapped. That scenario had a whole lot of negative connotations to it, and I really began to hope it wasn't the case. Hearing Oscar curse, while his outstretched hand did nothing to the inanimate pile of bones made that scenario reality. The fucking bonfire wouldn't lite.

"We should tell Solaire."

Suggested Oscar.

"He might know something we don't about why this bonfire wont light. He's obviously been here before, going by how he just dropped everything and went onto that balcony."

"Yeah, your right. I sure hope he knows something. Otherwise we are fucked."

We stepped onto the balcony in short order, and took note of a kneeling Solaire. He was before the broken remains of an old statue. Its crumbling stone chunks littered the grass, and were overcome by moss. It had obviously been there for quite a while. I called out to him.

"Hey Solaire, the bonfire wont light. Any idea whats wrong with it?"

He took a moment to finish whatever prayer he was saying before standing to face us. His helmet was off, tossed to the side in the grass and he went to go pick it up.

"That bonfire has never been able to be lit. Don't ask me why, its a mystery to myself as well."

He dusted off his helmet before placing it over his head, giving his voice that muffled echoing tone.

"We will have to do without it."

This was worrying. Very worrying. It might just have been another difference in this area, like the size of the burg, but I found this to be worse. Bonfires were an invaluable resource that had saved my ass again and again in the game. Since my time in Lordran began, I had only developed a deeper appreciation for them. To just have one 'not work' was not fucking cool man. It really threw off my entire grove.

Oscar summed up all that and more in his one word reply to Solaire.

"Damn."

I just nodded in agreement. Solaire wasn't looking though. Instead he was walking to the side. He stopped before a patch of stones in the wall that looked slightly off, before grabbing hold of one and pulling it free. Without that focal stone, the rest fell the the ground, revealing a hidden alcove. From that alcove Solaire pulled out a plain wooden box.

The box was rectangular, and made out of dark polished wood. It had obviously seen better days, but still looked to be of high quality. It was as wide as Solaire's chest, and half as tall.

I wondered what the hell could have been in the box, as Solaire held it up with his good arm and brushed the dust off, for it to have been hidden like that. I also wondered if Solaire was the one who put it there, or if he just knew of its location. Oscar seemed to recognize it, and through the slats on his helmet I could hear him gasp.

"Thats a bottomless box!"

Oscar's statement snagged my attention.

"Did you just say bottomless box?"

He nodded, and I stared at the simple looking box in Solaire's arms. That was the bottomless box? It was bigger than I expected to be sure, and I hadn't even been sure that it even existed. I had looked for it in the merchants pile, but it seemed that Solaire had beat me to the punch.

"Aye. I only know it because I've seen one before, during one of my visits to castle Astora. It was in the kings trophy hall. From what I know they are exceedingly rare, as only a few were made before that mad sorcerer was put to death."

His voice was full of wonder.

"How on earth did Solaire come to possess one?"

I had an idea. I guess Solaire had recognized it, as he was from Astora as well, supposedly. The merchant must not have knew what he had, and Solaire bought it off of him. However I just shrugged in response.

We moved out of the way of Solaire, who stepped into the bonfire room, the one with the big statue of mother and babe. He placed the box on the ground, and enlisted our help in emptying the bags onto the floor. We organized all of the supplies before Solaire opened the box and I got a chance to peer inside.  
Darkness. Where the bottom of the box would be, all you could see was darkness. Calling it pitch black would be misleading, as it was darker. It was the darkness of unbridled void. It was wrong, and that wrongness echoed in my chest as I stared. I had to toss myself away, profoundly disturbed by the experience. Solaire was not bothered by it, and began to systematically store the supplies into the void.

While I was recovering, Oscar questioned Solaire as to how he could recall the items from the dark. Solaire demonstrated, and claimed that when you placed your hand into the black you just would know what it contained, and would be able to grab whatever you were searching for. Oscar wanted to try it, and while he got to experience the cold feel of void, I passed on the experience. Maybe it didn't bother them like it did me, maybe it was just how much that darkness reminded me of being dead and that duchebag eyeball. Either way, I wanted nothing to do with the box.

After Oscar had his fun, and all the items were stored away, we got ready to move again. It made things easier as now we had only the box to carry, and no longer three separate bags. Solaire had rope previously stored, and together we jury rigged a sling that hung on Oscar's back. The box went into the sling, and Oscar had no issues carrying it.

I was extremely happy to find out, that the rest of the parish was just as I remembered it. unfortunately that did include the hollows, as well as the handful of miscellaneous beasties. It seemed that the drake and Havel had not got this far with their destruction, as it everything was intact.

That didn't deter us though, especially with Solaire annihilating the most dangerous of foes. His lightning spears legitimately fucked shit up. Oscar and I would be fighting the varying hollows, and boom, lightning spear would fly by and the armored boar thing fried in its metal suit.

My new uchigatana was working wonders for me, and I found the hollows to be easy pickings. Most of them had huge gaps in their armor, gaps that my blade found easily. Its sharpness sliced through the tough flesh like butter. Even the spear welding hollows found themselves having a bad day, as the uchigatana was sharp enough to cut slice through the wood with only a few chops. When all they had was a broken wooden pole to swing at me, I felt free just to go wild.  
I expected Oscar to do better than me in dealing with the hollows, but he exceeded all expectations with Havel's ring. The bottomless box weighed little more than any normal wooden box its size would, wasnt large enough to encumber him with his new found lightness. He was dancing around the hollows. Smacking away blows with his shield left and right. Slipping strikes in behind guards and around shields.

He even had a new weapon he was carrying on his person. The crossbow he had used against Havel he had taken a liking to. The two sniping hollows at the cross bridge had taken aim at us. I used my shield to block the bolt intended for me, and Oscar stepped out of the way like a badass. He raised his crossbow just as Solaire had finished dispatching another hollow, and readied his own form of bolt. The two let fly with their respective ammunition, and both struck the hollows on the mark.

Solaires lightning bolt tore a hole clean through the chest of one of the sniper hollows, and it collapsed, dead. Oscars iron tipped bolt slammed into the other hollows should, and knocked it off of its perch. The fall didn't kill it, but before it could stand up OI rushed to it and stomped the hell out of it. It stayed down.  
We pushed on through the parish, wrecking shop left and right. Our little march of asskickery was slowed down though, when we came across the hollowed Balder Knights.

Now from what I was beginning to understand, Hollowing didn't just drive a person mad. There was more to it than that. Instead, it emptied them of all but a never ending hunger for humanity. Thus the term, hollow. However that meant that all the beings skill and abilities remained, and perhaps so did their memories. All of who they were was ignored though in favor of that hunger. That explained why the hollow soldiers we fought were kinda suckish, as they were likely militia called in with no experience. It explained why Havel was such a goddamn beast, as he was a goddamn beast.

It also explained why the Balder Knights were fucking badasses.

Oscar discovered this first hand, because when we encountered our first balder knight of the burg he charged the hollow. His lightness and his decimation of the previous hollows making him overconfident. It was one of the Balder Knights with a rapier and target shield. The moment Oscar swung, he was immediately parried. Time seemed to freeze, as the Balder began the thrust that would have pierced right though Oscars stomach. He would have succeeded in ending the life of my friend, if I hadn't tackled him to the ground.

The balder obviously wansnt expecting an angry redhead to tackle him, and I don't think it was expecting that same redhead to begin to punch the ever living shit out of him through the opening in his helmet. It would have been smarter from me to have stabbed the knight I know, but I had dropped my sword when I tackled him and I was worried that if I let up to go get it, the knight would regain its bearings.

So I just kept punching away, gears of war 3 style. Not letting up in the slightest. After the first few hits, I began to get angrier and angrier. The pent up frustration and anxiety from the burg, and hell everything coming to the surface with every punch. I had no idea how long I had been hitting the hollow, but by the time Oscar and Solaire both pulled me off from him the face wasnt recognizable as a face and the body wasn't moving.

The anger left quickly, and was replaced by an exhaustion from my violent outburst. My gloves had protected my hands, but they still hurt like a bitch. Oscar and Solaire tried to see if I was okay, but I waved them off and went to pick up my sword. As I sheathed it with a resounding click, I looked back at the balders corpse.

"Thats what you get for fucking with my friend."

It was a stupid sentiment perhaps, and I knew the words sounded cheesy. But that didn't make it any less true. Oscar had my back, and id have his.  
Now that Oscar wasnt rushing in like a dumbfuck, the rest of the Balder knights fell in short order. We divided and conquered. By that, I mean Solaire would murder one with lightning and skill, while Oscar and I took turns stabbing the other in the back. It was very effective.

From one of their rotting corpses I was able to pillage a pimp ass balder shield which I donned gleefully. I always liked how they looked, and it offered more protection to my arm than the hollow soldier shield. I don't care how the stats looked in game. If it was made better, and covered more, it was better. Plus it looked bad ass.

Speaking of looking badass, there was still the Berenike knight in our way. With its steel armor and massive size, it cut an imposing figure within the church. Then there was also the channaler who hid up in the rafters. who was sure to rain magic down on while we fought the armored warrior. Or he would have, if he had stayed around to fight. The moment we came into sight, the six-eyed channeler warped away.

I would have pondered why this occurred, or what the far reach implications of it might be

if the Berenike knight hadn't chosen that moment to take note of us. It brandished its mace menacingly, before charging me of all people. I was forced to back up to avoid being crushed, and then I had to back up further as it threw its weight into a shield bash.

Oscar tried to approach from the side, but the knight pivoted on its heel and hit him with the shield he had tried to hit me with. Thankfully the knight was unable to put as much of the force into it that he was able to with me, and while Oscar was forced back he wasn't injured. What would have injured him would have been the mace swinging at him, but Solarie and I intervened.

Solaires blade peirced into the Berenike's shoulder, while I slashed one of the few unarmored places on the titan, the back of its knee. It dropped its mace, and found its leg without proper support which caused it to stumble. Oscar capitalized on this, and swung his sword clean through the thin gap between the Berenike's helmet and severed head hit the stones with a clang, and the colossus was no more.

The other adversaries that the church contained were defeated one by one. That included what remained of the Balder Knights, and the swarm of angry ratty hollows who swung their broken weapons. It was almost time to head to the roof, and fight the gargoyles for the right to ring the first bell of awakening, but I had something I needed to do first.

We had decided to take a break before climbing the rusty ladder which lead to the roof, and during that break I excused myself. Citing an urge to explore, as the architecture fascinated me. I wasnt questioned, as we had killed all of the nearby threats. So I went off to search for Lautrec the Embraced, while Oscar and Solaire sat down at a mostly intact table and began a conversation about whatever they had in common. Which conceded of knightly shit and their homeland.

I shouldnt have called it searching, because finding it took almost no effort at all. It was down the hall, and the boarded up room was easy to spot. The wooden barrier fell to my boot, as it was thin and shoddily put together. Like it was made in haste.

The room that housed Lautrec cell was different than the rest of the church. It was simple stucco, not painted not embellished. It made sense, Why waste decor to ease the eyes of a prisoner? The only thing close to decor would have been the single burning torch, which obviously had been burning for a while. There was a barrel in the corner, that proved to contain various weapons and items. The most striking being a twin pair of shotels, the preferred weapon of the golden knight.

There were two flights of stairs that lead to the single cell. After walking up them, I came face to helm with one Lautrec of Carim.

His head was held low, as he sat in his call. His golden armor was dim in the light, and his prison was bare of any furnishments. I knew he must have heard my approach, as he lifted his head to stare through the odd holes in his helmet. When he took sight of me, his entire body lifted. He sat up more straight, and I imagined if I could see his face it would appear eager.

"Oh, still human are you? Then I am in luck."

He motioned to his cell with his hand,

"As you can see, I am stuck without recourse. If you could only free me, then I would reward you handsomely."

I didn't respond. I just stared at him with flat eyes. I knew this man. I knew that he was a murderer, and a psychopath. I knew that he would be dangerous to associate with, that he would likely betray me later. But I also knew that he would escape on his own if given enough time, and he had seen me now. If I left, it wouldn't just be a cold apathy he would have for me but an anger. If I released him I would have his gratitude, for a time.

"Please," said Lautrec, his voice becoming more beseeching. " I have duties to fulfill. Things that must be done. What say you? You can only stand to benefit from it."

This would be a gamble, and in more ways than one. I was going to release him, that was already decided before I made it to the parish. But before I would set him free, I would have a few words with him.

"I know who you are."

I kept my voice as flat as my expression, and watched as his entire demeanor slowly changed. He grew more rigid, before relaxing once again. When he spoke again, his voice had lost its pleading edge. Now it was lower, and darker. Empty of his guile, it had a hint of curiosity.

"Oh, so you do? And what do you mean by that, exactly?"

My response was swift and bland.

"Yeah I do. I know your name, Lautrec. I know the name of your 'love', the goddess Fina. I know that you're a murderer, and that you will stop at nothing to achieve your goals. I know you hail from Carim, and that you are known as the 'embraced'. I know you Luatrec, and what you are capable of."

I paused my speech to pull out a key I had pilfered from one of the ratty hollows that surrounded the chaneller. I held it aloft in the light of the flickering torch-light, so that he could see it.

"And that is why i'm going to set you free."

I lowered my arm, and waited for Lautrecs response. Once my words had sunk it, he began his low chuckle that threatened to turn into full blow laughter. He regained his composure before it did, which was good as the laughter might echo and alert my companions of my new 'acquaintance.'

Once he finished chuckling, he stood and spoke.

"You are certainly an interesting one. I am curious as to how you came about such knowledge, but it is really no matter. You know who am I, and perhaps what I have done...but still you wish to release me?"

I walked closer to his cell door, and stared him dead in the eyes.

"Knights with your talents are rare, and with your particular moral standing, rarer still. I have plans Lautrec. Plans that may need...things done. You wish to be freed, and I might need some assistance in the future. You did promise a reward, did you not?"

"Yes, I did. Very well then. Freedom for a favor, a fair bargain. May I know the name of to whom I am indebted to?"

I slipped the key into the lock and twisted until a clack was heard, I stepped back and pulled the gate open. Giving a murderous psychopath his freedom...You know, when I say it like that, it sounds really bad. Honest, but bad.

"My name is Rufio."

He stepped out of his cell for the first time in who knows how long, and faced me.

"Rufio...thank you for releasing me."

"Think nothing of it. You will repay me, in due time. Now im sure you are eager to have your weapons returned to you?"

"Yes, very. You wouldn't happen to know where they were stored?"

"Check the barrel at the bottom of the stairs. I'm not sure if that Is everything, but it should be most of it.

He nodded to me.

"Again, thank you."

We descended the stairs and as Lautrec was re-arming himself I gave him some instructions. I told him to wait until after he heard fighting on the roof to leave, as I didn't want my current companions to know of him just yet. I told him to meet me at Firelink, and to act as if we just met once I showed up. We would work from there.

He agreed to all of it, and began to go through some basic movements with his shotels, to gain a feel for them after their time of disuse. I was going to leave him with that, but then I remembered one very important detail to add.

"Lautrec, one more thing."

He didn't stop his attacks, but still responded.

"Yes, Rufio?"

"Do not kill the fire keeper at Firelink. She is a part of my plans."

That gave him pause. I wasn't sure if it was because he had been planning on doing it before hand, or if he found it ludicrous I would even suggest such a thing. Whatever the cause may have been, he agreed and I left him in that room.

On my way back to Solaire, I was trying to figure out a way to tell them what challenges awaited us on the roof without letting them know what I knew, but my thoughts drifted to Lautrec. Had my bluff worked? It seemed to, but with men like Lautrec, so skilled in deceit and manipulation, it was nearly impossible to tell. I had hoped my knowledge and my words had convinced him that I knew much more that I was letting on, which was partially true.

I needed his help, if for a time. Eventually, if he turned out to be liability Solaire should be able to take him out. I hoped it wouldn't come to that though, even if such a though was naive. For my plan to be successful I would need as many people on my side as possible. Because the road would be long and difficult, and the final challenge harder still. The damn eyeball said I could be a hero, said I could save them.

Just like I saved Oscar.

Just like you failed the merchant.

I was trying to figure out where the hell that thought came from when I arrived at the table where Solaire and Oscar had, of all things, engaged in an arm wrestling contest. Solaire was obviously stronger, and his gentle smile was a striking contrast to Oscars red face. Oscar was clearly putting all of his effort into it while Solaire simply enjoyed the sport.

The moment I stepped into the room, Solaire's attention was diverted long enough for Oscar to gain several inches in his favor. Solaire stopped the advance on seconds before his hand would have hit the would and gave me a smile.

"One second Rufio, let me finish this friendly competition up if you will."

He said before slamming Oscar's hand into the other side of the table. Oscar just stared, his brain trying to comprehend the fact that he had lost so completely and utterly, when he had just been on the cusp of victory. Solaire just patted his shoulder in a consoling way.

"Better luck next time Oscar, you did very well though. You are quite strong for a knight of your age. With some training you could be on par with a warrior of sunlight such as my self, ha ha ha ha..."

I suppose Solaire thought such words might be comforting, but I thought Oscar might have found find the patronizing advice angering. He didn't to my surprise, and took it with better than I expected. Oscar sighed and nodded before standing from the table and offering Solaire his hand to shake. Solaire took it in his manly grasp and shook it firmly, and all was good. Perhaps their time in conversation had bonded them closer.

"So Rufio, did you enjoy staring at musty old walls and broken furniture?"

Asked Oscar, half joking and half curious.

"Heh, yeah I did. While uncultured swine like you might not enjoy the finer arts such as architecture, I find it invigorating to behold."

It was bullshit. This church was boring as hell and I couldn't wait to leave. He just chuckled and helped Solaire attach the bottomless box to his back.

* * *

This was it. It was time to hit the roof, and fight the gargoyles. There was only one problem with that plan. Neither Solaire nor Oscar knew of the danger ahead. Sure they had guessed that something was up there, ready to stop us from reaching our goal. But they didn't know what, and they defiantly didn't know that there were two things.

I had a choice. I could act like I knew nothing, and we wouldn't climb to the roof on guard, but unprepared. Or I could tell them about the gargoyles, and everything I knew of their attacks and weaknesses. If I told them though, it would be something they would immediately catch on to. I had a feeling Oscar was beginning to figure it out, but this would put the nail in my coffin.

I wasn't sure if it would be so bad if they knew that I knew, but if they did suddenly I would be called into question. They might not trust me, and If I had to try to survive Lodran alone for a single day I knew I wouldn't make it. I needed them. And somewhere deep down I hoped that they needed me. They had no idea of the challenges and trials ahead. Of the misery and sorrow that infested this land. I could save them from it.

But we wouldn't be saving anything if we were dead. the gargoyles were not that tough though, and Solaire could easily take one on. He might even be able to take both, but the incident with Havel taught me that no matter how badass he was, he was neither invincible nor immortal.

So my plan for the gargoyles was thus. Solaire would take on one, while Oscar and I fought the second. If we couldn't defeat it, Solaire could assist us after he finished his foe. We should be able to survive that long.

But how to tell them? It would have to be on the fly. As soon as we stepped onto the roof and the beasties came down I would shout it. I could only hope they would hear me, or even listen.

Despite all of these worries, I was still fairly confident in our victory. We could do it, we had to do it. With all this on my mind and more, I climbed the ladder after Oscar and Solaire. We came to the first landing, and then the second, and then we were at the open door.

Sunlight coated the roof in odd splotches because apparently clouds had rolled in. I wasnt even sure that I could rain in Lordran but I began to desperately wish it could. I missed the rain. The one good thing in my cell, It had brought me so much comfort in those dark days.

Now wasn't the time for rain though, it was the time for battle. We drew our weapons. Solaire with his sunlight straight sword and sunlight shield. Oscar with Astora's straight sword and his crest shield. With their weapons and knightly armor, they seemed quite awesome. And me, with my uchiganta and balder shield. My skinny self and less knightly armor that made me seem like a tag along.

We three stepped onto the roof, and took in our surroundings. The view of course was gorgeous. To the right the great walls of Anor Londo were raised into the sky, and to the left was an open expanse that stretched as far as the eyes could see. Behind us was the path that led us to this place, and all the choices we had made. Before us was the bell tower, our objective and what would signal our future.

And in our way, were the bell tower guardians, the gargoyles.

The moment our feet touched the roofs tile, they had begun to come to life. Chips of stone fell from their flesh, and their muscles coiled and bulged. Their mouthes snapped shut before opening again, and when they did their tounges were wet and pink. Unlike in the game, once they were completely free, both of them flew down to the roof. They roared in unison, challenging us to take a single step further.

I took it a step further all right. With the hand that held my katana I gave them the bird before taking a dramatic and overly large step. It was very unnecessary, but I felt it was needed. It wasn't just for the gargoyles but for the rest of Lordran as well. Fuck you Lordran, we gonna mess you up.

Then we attacked. Solaire immediately charged a bolt and hurled it at the leftmost gargoyle, which happened to be the weaker of the two. It took the bolt in its shoulder with an angry roar. Solaire then charged past me to attack the more armored enemy, and that's when Oscar and I went after the wounded one.  
The gargoyle swung its halberd in a menacing arc as we approached it. We were out of its range but the wind it generated slowed us. It was very strong, and A hit from it could knock us off the roof. We would have to be careful.

The first thing we did was split up. Oscar ran to the left, and I ran to the right. It looked back and forth between the two of us, trying to decide who to attack first. As I was on its injured side, it went for me. Wrong move.

As soon as it raised its halberd, Oscar slashed its side. The blade didn't go very deep, as the beasts hide was tough but it did leave a long cut that obviously had to be painful. Hot blood hit the tile, and the gargoyle stumbled in its swing.

I took that opportunity to make my mark, and I made a slash similar to Oscars, except for mine was across its thigh as well. My sharper blade went deeper the longer the cut was, and I had to yank it out at the end of the wound.

The gargoyle had no tail axe to speak of, which was fortunate for us as we were now behind it. Before we could strike its unprotected rear, it took to the air and did a 180 turn. As it landed it belched fire, and we had to back step to avoid getting roasted.

I glanced to my left, to see how Solaire was doing. He was indeed holding his own, even without being able to fully block due to his arm. He expertly dodged the gargoyles swings, and would counter with his own thrust. The chest and arms of his gargoyle were already littered with small bleeding wounds. And its muzzle already had a large downward cut, that had broken through part of its helmet. All in all, Solaire was doing fine.

But our gargoyle had noticed as much, and had seen the danger its kin was in. It took a deep breath, before releasing a second volley of fire. This time directed at Solaire, and not us.

"SOLAIRE BEHIND YOU!"

I shouted to try and warn him. He didn't even through a glance over his shoulder, but rolled out of the way. The fire scorched the spot where he had stood, and the gargoyles both cried out in frustration. Apparently I wasn't the only one with a strategy.

The gargoyles knew what they were doing. This was confirmed when they both flew up and landed on the other side of the roof. They had regrouped, and were deciding how to best handle us.

We mirrored their actions, and grouped up with Solaire. The plan in my head wasn't going to work, not with our enemies being as intelligent as they were. They would figure it out too quick for it to be effective. Solaire had a plan for us though, and Oscar and I listened with rapt attention while he explained it. The whole time, we kept one eye on the gargoyles, waiting to see if they would make a move.

Once we had the plan down, we broke and took positions. Oscar stood to the right, while I was slightly behind Solaire. Solaire charged his lightning spear but didn't throw. We had to wait for them to come to us, and they did.

They charged simultaneously, and split apart at the center. With both of their halberds ready, they would come from opposite angles and try to pincer us between them. We were ready for it, and the moment they were close enough we acted.

Soliare moved first, and ran in the direction Oscar was running, Which was to the gargoyle on the right. I sprinted left, and was headed straight for the other. When Solaire was halfway there, he hurled his spear before pivoting on his heel and changing course, now heading for my gargoyle.

The one Oscar had been facing was hit in the wing with the spear, because it had been focusing on Oscar the whole time. Oscar took advantage of its injury, by attacking when it was distracted. He managed to slip under its guard, stab it right through the chest.

On my end, Solaire had beast blindsided. It blocked my swing with its halberd and was about to counter, when Solaire slammed into it sword first on its side. When it cried out, I struck at its throat and severed it. Even so, Solaire kept pushing and pushing the dying gargoyle until the were at the edge of the roof. He pulled his blade free, and gave the monster a fierce kick. It I hadn't severed its vocal cords, i'm sure it would have screamed all the way down.

Our target defeated, we turned to witness a struggling Oscar who was trying to claw his way free from under the dead gargoyles corpse. We rushed to go help him, and together we managed to lift it long enough for him to crawl out.

"That...was quite an adventure."

Panted Oscar as all three of us caught our breath.

"Yes it was...Solaire your feint was genius. It worked like a charm."

I commented. Solaires plan had worked like clockwork, an I was very impressed. I knew he was a knight, but those were battlefeild tactics. EIther he had come up with them on the fly, or he had some previous knowladge of war.

As it was in his nature, Solaire accepted the compliment humbly and gave alittle bow.

"It was nothing so amazing my freind, just a little somthing I thought up on the spot. I am pleased greatly by its sucess, and am quite happy to have such warriors as you by my side!"

Oscar and I didn't take the praise nearly as well. He tried to play it off and look away but I could see he was pleased. I just looked at the ground, embarrassed and proud at the same time. It was more than just Solaire's praise however. I was excited, filled with a rush of energy. It was slightly uncomfortable, but at the same time wonderful. I think it might have been the rush of souls from the gargoyles, and with as many as we got I wondered just how many undead the pair had eliminated.

Speaking of our fallen foes. I went over to the fallen corpse of the gargoyle Oscar killed, the armored one, and drew my sword. Using one hand to lift hold up its tail. I began the process of carving the tail axe from the rest of the body.

"Could one of you bring me the box? I want to take this with us."

They both looked at me like I was insane.

"...What?"

"Why in Gwyns name do you wish to take that with us Rufio? I can hardly see that being used effectively by any of us."

"Oscar has a point Rufio, And I must say that im curious as well. What do you plan to do with it."

"Well mainly I want it as a trophy for after we take over the world. As well as it might be useful if we ever meet a trader. Rare things like this might fetch a good price."

Solaire nodded, and was satisfied by my answer. Oscar was confused about the whole 'take over the world' bit I had tossed in their, but didn't push it further. The tail came of with slight effort, and was then stowed away in the bottomless box by someone else. I didn't want to go near that thing.

The battle was done, the trophy was collected, and we were still alive. Now there was only one thing left to do, ring the first bell of awakening. With a confident stride, we crossed the distance of the roof and entered into the belltower. Solaire opted to stay at the bottom, citing that it was our quest and that he had only assisted, so it should be us that rings the bell.

We didn't argue, and began the long climb up all of the ladders. Now I haven't said this before, but I hate ladders. I really do. I feel vulnerable as hell while on them, and there is nowhere to go but down if you fuck up.

The ladders were over quick enough, and we found ourselves staring at the huge bell of awakening. It wasn't gigantic, but it was defiantly larger than an ordinary bell. Below it was a lever, and Oscar and I both put a hand on it. We smiled at each other, and unspoken words cut through the air. We had done it, reached the first bell of awakening. It was time to start the prophecy. We pulled, and the bell rang.

Its melodic peals echoed all throughout Lordran, letting all know far and wide that we had succeeded in the first part of our quest. Sure there was more to come. Many more trials and hardships, but I like to think that the sound of the bell ringing was hope to the inhabitants of this cursed land. That even those deepest in despair, from the darkest part of the Tomb of the Giants, to the highest tower in the Dukes Archives, that they might feel a bit of hope from the sound of that bell.

We descended quickly, both of us eager to return to Firelink for some well earned rest. When we reached the spot where Solaire had been waiting, we found that he was not alone. Behind him stood one Oswald of Carim, Pardoner of Velka. He was standing in his usual pose, arms and legs splayed out. He had a smirk on his face, and was watching Solaire who hadn't noticed him yet.

"Soliare, there appears to be someone behind you."

Said Oscar, pointing to Oswald. Solaire spun around faster than I could blink, and finally got his first glimpse of the pardoner in his leather robes and brass mask. His sword was in had and he seemed as if he was ready to attack Oswald, but regained his cool.

"How did you get behind me?"

Solaires voice was low, and dangerous. He wasn't very happy that Oswald had managed to slip past his guard. For a knight of his caliber, it was little wonder why. All of his skills meant nothing to an opponent who he didn't even know was there.

"Oh, not even willing to introduce thyself first, Solaire of Astora? Such bad manners from a knight!"

Oswald cackled before turning his head to face Oscar and I.

"Oscar, thy really should show thine friend how it is done? Shouldn't he, Rufio?"

Oscar now drew his sword and stood by Solaire. His knowledge of our names and his ability to sneak up on Solaire had them both on edge. I wasn't, and approached him calmly.

"How do you know my name?"

It was the question on everyone's mind, and that's how it sounded. Like I was asking for everyone. But there was a deeper meaning to my question. He knew the names of almost everyone in Lordran, of that I had no doubt. But I wasn't from Lordran, I wasn't from the game. He shouldn't know who I was.  
Oswald knew what I meant, and responded in kind.

"I know the names of all sinners, great and small. For I pardon in the name of Velka, the goddess of sin, and she knoweth all."

His words didn't betray his true meaning to Oscar and Solaire, but I knew what he was saying. Velka...the mysterious godess of sin that we knew so little of, The one goddess all of the other deities feared. She knew about me, but how much?

"And what all does she know?"

Oswald's expression never changed, and it was kind of irritating just seeing that same smug smile on his face.

"Did thou not hear me? She knows all. She knows thee, and all thine sin. The sins thee hath committed, and the sins thou plan on committing. Thou art a very interesting person Rufio, and interesting people cometh from interesting places. That too, does she know."

After hearing his words, my head began to swim. I had to step back, but I was dizzy and thus stumbled. Solaire caught me, and helped me to the ground as Oscar confronted Oswald.

"YOU! What did you do to him!?"

"Me? I did nothing. I simply told him what he asked to hear. It is not my fault if he found the knowledge...disorienting. He he he he!"

This was infuriating to Oscar, who was turning red from rage. I would have tried to stop him, but I couldn't find it to speak. Solaire stepped in on my behalf, and grabbed Oscars sword arm. Three guesses to where it had been reaching before Solaire stopped him. Oscar turned his glare from Oswald to Solaire.

"Stay your hand Oscar."

"But he hurt Rufio!"

"Rufio is fine, he just needs a moment. This man makes me uncomfortable as well, but we should not attack a pardoner of the gods. It would be heresy."  
I managed to clear my head enough to croak out a few words, backing up Solaire's statement.

"What he said."

Oscar was indeed not happy, but began to get it under control. Untill Oswald opened his mouth to speak again.

"Thine temper is great Oscar, thou should gaineth a measure of control over it. Lest someone you care about get hurt. A brother perhaps?"

And that was it, Oscars shitstorm was fully unleashed. He began to shout, curse, and swing. All towards the one goal of bringing injury to Oswald. Solaire had to reach under his arms and around his shoulders to contain him. Oswald just laughed, finding amusement it seemed, in pushing Oscar to the breaking point.  
While this was going on I managed to get my self standing and I assisted Solaire in trying to calm Oscar down. Every once in a while I would shoot Oswald a dirty look to which he would still just smile at.

With our combined might and words we eventually got Oscar chill enough that he would not attack Oswald on sight, but he did not want to be in the same room with him. He left out of the bell tower to wait, and Solaire chose to go with him. Neither one of my knights were fond of this pardoner, and I couldn't blame them. He was a dick.

Now that we were alone, I felt more at ease to talk about what had disoriented me. Namely, Velka's knowledge. And what she planned on doing with that knowledge.

"So what does Velka want?"

I asked. I might have been a bit curt with my tone, but this guy didn't deserve all the niceties of polite conversation.

"There has to be some reason that she sent you to bring this up. Somthing she could gain from it."

In a move that shocked me, Oswald actually dropped his arms and leaned against the wall like a normal human being.

"What Velka wants, is balance. The innocent sin, and thus becometh the guilty. The guilty are punished, and thus becometh the innocent once more. But things have come into play that have upset this balance, or so I am told. The actions of the gods, are curious things. As even deities can sin."  
His response was less than helpful, and I had to pry further.

"That doesn't tell me what she wants from me. Id like to think that you wouldn't be here spouting cryptic bullshit and pissing off my friends without kind of reason."

"I am but a simple pardoner, my only calling is serving the wills of the gods. If thou art here to confess, or to accuse, it is my duty to hear it. That is my reason. However, I do have a gift for thee."

"A gift?" I asked. Confused as to what he meant. Was he about to 'absolve' me free of charge or something?

"Yes, a gift. Thy path will be a winding one, Full of fraught and peril. For thou, some guidance might be in order."

With one hand he reaching into the pocket of his dark robe jacket thing, and pulled out something. When he held out his hand I was able to determine its identity. It was a book. A small one, like one of those pocket notebooks. Its cover was leather, with faded gold border and letting that was beyond illegible. Various slips of paper were spilling out from the sides. It was obviously very old, and I was afraid it would fall apart once I took hold of it.

It didn't. Instead it felt as solid as if it was a tenth of its apparent age. I examined it, trying to wring its name from distant memory. Eventually it came to me. It was the book of the guilty, what was supposed to be used to keep track of all sinners. I remembered it as being a sort of leaderboard, so I was curious as to how it would read now. My attention returned to Oswald, to ask him why I was given the book, but he was gone.

"Fucking ninja's man, I swear..."

I shook my head and didn't let his strange disappearance get to me. He left how he had arrived, without a trace. Well, two traces. The book I held in my hand, and Oscars sour mood. Before I stepped out of the bell tower, I flipped the book open to see what it contained.

Nothing. The damn book was blank, with crisp white pages unmarred by pen and ink. I could only sigh as I put it in my pocket, but then my fingers felt the warmth of the sunlight medal and I found myself smiling again. So what if Velka Knew, so what if her pardoner was a dick? The first leg of my journey was complete, and I could be satisfied with that.

It was with that same smile I stepped out onto the roof and into the sunlight, to join my companions.

* * *

Aaaaaaand there we have it! The end of chapter Four: Book of the guilty. Things were more action packed in this chapter, No? What with both the fight with Havel, as well as the battle with the gargoyles. ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED? You should be. Because if not, why read?

So now everyone's favorite Golden bastard is free to roam around Lordran. Do you think that Rufio made a mistake in setting him free? Or that maybe Lautrec can be of enough assistance to risk his betrayal? Let me know.

And speaking of knowing, we now have our first interaction with one of the few active gods left in Lodran. Velka. Indeed, what does she want with Rufio, and how did she come to know of his existence? When will I stop asking questions? Who knows my friends, who knows...

New party member acquired! Solaire of Astora! "PRAISE THE SUN!"

A taste of whats to comes...

A favor returned, and a false introduction. Blank pages reveal danger, and an opportunity. A journey to save potential allies leads to a battle with unending gluttony. A key is found which leads to disease and despair.

Next time, in Soul of a Hero

Chapter Five: Pyromancy Flame

P.s. Dont count on it being a freak of nature like this chapter. Then again, dont count it out either.

peace.


	5. Pyromancy Flame

Great googly moogly readers, sorry for taking so long with this update. The chapter itself had actually been finished for over a week, but it still needed to be edited and proofread. All of that was put on hold, because life happened. I got a job, which is great, but that job quickly ate up the free time I had. What little time I had left, I was exhausted and didn't feel like doing all of jack shit. Couple that with the fact that DARK SOULS 2 came out, and we had our recipe for no writing. Today I managed to pull myself away from the xbox long enough to both finish the edit and proofread, and let me tell you that took a big ass amount of effort.

Without further ado, lets hit the comments. I know you all are chomping at the bit to read, so I might be brief. Might. Ill try.

To Chippermovie: Glad you enjoyed it!

To JPVE: Bruh, if you only knew the shit im going to put them through. I almost feel bad for it, and im the one coming up with it! Fuck gankers. That hydra was a pansy. I wonder what afro will come up with next. And sif is going to be an odd fish. I have several idea's swimming through my head on how to deal with that big ol puppy, but we will cross that bridge later.

To Abyss Phantom: Motherfucker if your this insightful im going to have to stop leaving hints at the next chapter. I wont say that your spot on, or that I was particularly cryptic with my teaser but hot damn. To answer one question, they wont be finding that many enchanted rings, and those they do find with go to the individual best suited. Also, I might take one of your ideas, but I wont say which one. To anything else, this chapter will either answer it, or it would be too much of a spoiler. Also, its all good bro.

To a very happy guy: I took your advice, if indirectly. And im rather glad I did. Going back and rereading improved the quality of this chapter quite a bit. It is by no mean a polished gem, but is better than before. You were right on my rushing, and I will try to take it slower while balancing it with more regular updates. Rufio has a plan for spidey gurl, but whether it will work or not...

To GrimTheBanette:Everbody just loves the shit out of sif dont they? Good lord. When it comes to Artorias lets just say I have plans for the DLC and leave it at that.

To the Guest who gave me that picture epic picture: I really appreciate the art, and I saved it to have as a motivational piece. If one of my readers cares enough to draw that, then I can definitely get my shit together and write for them.

To BadOrk11: I have some slight ideas, but I dont think I will be combining anything from the two games. The lore is DS2 is still widely speculated, and I have everything I need for this story in the first game. I might make some kind of bridge later one, once I get further in and once I have a better grasp of DS2.

To Massgamer45: Im glad you like it! Rufio is gonna try to save everyone he can, keyword try. Yeah he's gonna be a dex build, as he is more nimble than tough. When it comes to magics, probably not. Being from another world, such concepts might be beyond him. He has no faith in those gods for miracles, he doesnt have the framework for sorcery, and he would be more likely to set himself on fire trying to learn pyromancy than actually making fireballs.

To NathanEryk: I have literally sat down and listened to their complete dialogues on youtube several times each to try and get a decent grasp of their personalities and speech patterns. Its still not perfect, but im hoping to get better at it as the story goes on. Its taken some effort to make sure Rufio feels like a character as well, and not just a cardboard cutout to convey my opinions. I hope by then end he feels as real as anyone else.

To Anonymous: Sorry to keep you waiting.

Aaaand that it! See you all at the end of the chapter.

**Chapter Five: Pyromancy Flame**

"Why are you smiling?"

Grumbled Oscar as I removed myself from the bell tower. His mood sour from the interaction with Oswald. I wanted to know exactly why mentioning his brother had set him off but now wouldn't be the time to ask.

"Because we did it!"

I shouted as I looped my arms around each of their shoulders. Both were unprepared for the gesture, and we stumbled slightly on the roof. It wasn't my smartest move, considering location, but it still was needed.

"We killed the drake, beat Havel, kicked the collective asses of the gargoyles, and rang the first bell, together! Why shouldn't I be smiling?"

Oscar grumbled and shrugged me off, but there was no real anger in the movements. Reminding him of our victory would lessen the stain left by Oswald, but it would take a little more time for him to cool off.

Solaire chuckled and returned my embrace before I released him. He at least seemed eager to celebrate our victory, which considering his personality it wasnt a stretch. Being the jolly and cooperative knight that he was, it made perfect sense. He seemed as well, to catch on to my attempt to free Oscar from his mood.

"You are right Rufio. Oscar, do not let that knave bring you down. Our victory is ours, and he shall not ruin it. Come now, give a cheer. It is well earned. "

Solaire's tone was almost fatherly, which fit the figure he was quickly developing in my mind. His experience, even temperament, and badassitude made him perfect for the position. Perhaps it fit the same in Oscar's mind as well, as he gave us both a look and tossed his arms up in a half sincere half sarcastic gesture of celebration.

"Hooray."

His deadpan exclamation fit too well, and Solaire and I laughed.

"That was the single most cheerful thing I have ever seen. Bar none."

said I, as I began to head to the door leading from the roof and back into the church.

"I concur."

Said Solaire.

"A truly rousing cheer to say the least."

Oscar didn't comment or smile, but as he walked he had a bit more pep in his step which made me even more cheerful. I didn't like seeing him upset, it bothered me, and I was glad to see that he was shaking it off.

We left the roof of the parish relatively quickly, and climbed down the ladders into the church proper. All of us were tired, sore, and ready to find a bonfire. The closest one we knew of was in Firelink. Well, the closest one we were supposed to know of was in Firelink. There was one in the parish, that happened to be nearby the beefy Andre of Astora, but It wasn't time yet to go there. Soon though.

Solaire was unaware of the lift in the church, but Oscar had remembered the crestfallen warrior talking about it. He brought it up and we found it in a separate room, to the left of the pews. If I didn't say it before, I will say it now. Places being bigger was an absolute bitch. Aside from general areas, I didn't know where half this shit was. Either way, we found it.

Pulling A lever that I knew hadn't existed in the game, I found the elevator to be in working order. It appeared that having to take it from the parish first, down to Firelink, still was how it had to be initially activated. I was extremely thankful for that, because if it had turned out that the elevator was actually busted, we would have been boned. Unless one of my companions pulled a surprise knowledge of mechanics out of their ass, we would have been walking all the way back.

"It looks a bit old..."

Said Oscar, looking at the elevator dubiously.

"...and dangerous."

He spoke the truth. The elevator, while still mobile had indeed gone past the prime of its life.

"Indeed it has Oscar, but this is the quickest route to this Firelink place you two spoke so well of. If we want to get to safety before sundown, this is the only way."

Said Solaire, testing with his foot to see how the contraption held his weight. He found it stable enough, and stepped onto it fully. The elevator groaned, and dipped with his added weight but remained steadfast.

He waved us forward, and we got on one at a time. First Oscar, and then me. When the old chain held, we activated the switch that sent us down and the gate closed.

It was nerve-wracking to ride the elevator. The two armored knights were anything but light, and the creaking of the gears made that well known. We all stood nearly perfectly still, unwilling to give it any reason to break and send us falling to our deaths. When we reached the bottom and the gate opened, we all rushed out. None willing to stay in it any longer than needed.

We descended from the stairs and came upon Petrus who was at his usual spot, waiting for m'lady and her companions. Oscar greeted him as we approached, and I was forced to do the same so as not to make obvious my hatred of the fat prick.

This being the first time he and Solaire met, they made their was cordial, but it was obvious after a few minutes of conversation that he didn't like the man. Solaire seemed to catch on easily to the shadiness of Petrus, and didn't like it one bit. That, or like 'trusty' Patches he had issues with clerics. When introductions were finished we left Petrus with a decent farewell before moving on.

At long last we came to the beautiful burning bonfire, and its sweet soothing estus healed our abhorrent aches and agonies. Solaire was quite happy to have his arm healed, and I was quite happy to have my everything healed. Oscar too, let out a happy sigh as the estus enveloped us. They removed their helmets, and I ran my fingers through my hair. We sat like that for a while. All three of us content just to let our weary bones rest.

I noticed that the crestfallen warrior was no where to be seen, and I was curious as to where he went. I wasn't left wondering for long, because he approached from the stairs that lead to the firekeeper. He seemed surprised to see us, but covered it up quickly and marched to his usual perch. He didn't even say hello.

The ever anti-social Oscar ignored his coming with little effort, and while enraptured by the estus I decided to as well. Solaire was the only one who cared about the new arrival, and made his curiosity known.

"Who is that fellow, The one with the sullen gaze?"

He asked Oscar with a tilt of his head.

"He is eyeing us in a rather strange way."

Oscar gave a snort, immediately showing his contempt for the person in question.

"We don't know his name, but we do know he's an ass and not worth the time pondering. Just ignore him and enjoy the bonfire."

Solaire frowned and I gave Oscar a nudge before commenting.

"Don't be so harsh Oscar, he's not all bad."

Oscar declined to respond, and in a way followed his own advice. He adjusted to lay down on his back and went about staring at the sky through the leaves of the giant tree. Making it fully clear he wanted no part in talking of the warrior.

This confused Solaire, who turned to me for answers.

"Why does Oscar harbor such an Ill opinion of the man, Was he slighted in some way?"

I sighed and explained it as best I could.

"When we first arrived here it wasn't very graceful. The man saw, and he made fun of Oscar's 'knightly' skills. Oscar took offense to that. He also was in a bad mood because we had been riding in the talons of a giant crow the entire day. It's not as fun as it sounds, and we both were painfully cramped by the time the ordeal was over. His patience was very thin by that point."

I could hear Oscar mutter something from his place on the ground. I couldn't make it out exactly, but I got the gist of it. It seemed that Oscars mother never taught him not to say anything if he had nothing nice to say.

Solaire mulled my words over, his hand on his chin in a way that seemed out of place on the sunny knight.

"Hmmm yes, I could see how that would make friendship between the two quite difficult. Is there anything we could do to remedy the situation? It is better for warriors who share a place of rest to at least be cordial. Its beneficial for all involved."

I shrugged. He was right of course, especially considering my plans. However at the moment, it really didn't matter.

"Eh, be that as it may I don't think there will be any problems. He seems keen enough of letting us be, and I think Oscar wants as little to do with him as possible."

Oscar mmhmmd his agreement, and Solaire relented.

"Very well. I will press it no further."

Conversation now over, We chilled there for a bit longer. After the long haul of the burg, we all seemed fine with just resting for a while. The time would come soon enough to go after the second bell, and I still had a lot of planning to do before we got to that point. At the moment though there was nothing immediately present to worry about, so there was no rush. While we were sitting around Oscar did bring up a valid question, and asked Solaire if he was going stay with us for the remainder of the quest.

When Soliare began to think it over, I got kinda worried. I hadn't even considered the thought that Solaire would leave us, I had assumed that he would stick around to help out. We desperately needed him, especially this early on. I was halfway decent in combat, and Oscar could even be called good, but Solaire was a clear cut above us both. Without him, we wouldn't have even survived the burg, and without him our chances for surviving the rest of the adventure would dwindle down to somewhere below a snowball's chance in hell.

But then Solaire put my fears to rest.

"I think I will Oscar, at least for a time. While my quest is different from yours, I may find what I am looking for during our travels. Besides, Ive taken a bit of a liking to you two. You remind me of myself in my youth. Ha ha ha ha ha..."

I let out the breath I had been holding, extremely relived that Solaire was going to stay with us, even if only 'for a time'. I figured that as we got farther in, the greater his attachment could grow. I hoped that by the time his depression had begun to sink it, I would be close enough to him to be able to snap him out of it. I knew that He wouldn't find his sun. Not in Lodran, and not anywhere else. Such was his fate but I would not let him die over it. He was to usefull, and too much of a good guy.

Oscar seemed to take a small bit of pride from Solaire's comparison. It seemed that whatever earlier distrust Oscar had for the sunny knight had evaporated as we crossed the burg and parish. Now he had nothing but respect for the man. But he was puzzled by something Solaire had said.

"Solaire, while it may not be my place to pry, what exactly are you looking for?"

I seriously wondered if Oscar was prepared for the can of worms he just had opened.

Solaire listened to Oscars question, before looking up into the sky wistfully. The sun was not visible from here, and Solaire looked back to us dejected.

"I am looking for my very own Sun Oscar."

His tone was distant, and he seemed very far away from us at that moment.

"You have a child?"

Asked Oscar, tentatively.

Solaire shook his head.

"No, not a son of that sort. A sun like the magnificent one which hangs in the sky. That is what I am seeking. Do you not find that strange?"

Oscar indeed found it strange, as the look on his face showed extreme confusion. Solaire waited patiently for the answer. Oscar managed to spit out 'yes' after trying to decide whether Solaire had been joking or not.

Solaire took no offense, and laughed again.

"Well you should. Dont fret Oscar, I get that look all the time. When one has a goal such as I do, people begin to question ones sanity."

Soliare seemed to find humor in this, because he smiled as if he was recalling some fond memory.

"But I know it is out there, somewhere. Waiting for me to find it. And I will, even if it takes a thousand years."

Now Solaire fixed his gaze upon me. I had just been listening up to this point, feeling no need to comment.

"What about you Rufio, do you not find all of this to be strange? A knight seeking for a sun of his own?"

I wasnt sure exactly how to respond. If I acted like I didn't find it weird, they would wonder why and then I might have to make up some explanation. If I did act like it was odd, I ran the risk of hurting Solaire's feelings. Even if he knew it was strange, I still would feel bad in saying it.

"Yes, it is strange, but not the strangest thing ive heard of. I once heard of two undead who waited on a giant crow on top of mountain to rescue them and fly them half way across the continent. Now that is strange if you ask me."

Middle ground was the safest bet, and It did earn a chuckle out of Oscar.

But now I had piqued Solaire's curiosity.

"You mentioned that crow before, Is that really how you arrived in Lodran? I have seen many amazing things in my years, but never a giant crow. The thought is...strangely appealing."

I would have asked about the 'strangely appealing' because that line of thought lent credence to a certain theory but Oscar interjected his two cents before I could.

"It may be odd but it is true. I had no idea such a thing existed, but once we had earned our freedom from the asylum Rufio here told me of it and suggested we should wait for it. I was doubtful at first, but Rufio had spoke true and the great bird came. I still wonder, how did you know of the bird? I doubt such a thing is common knowledge, even in the strange land which you are from."

The last part was intended for me, but I already had this excuse prepared.

"When I was locked in my cell I didnt do much but watch the sky. It was only once, but I saw the crow fly overhead with someone in its claws. Considering our other options of leaving the asylum, I thought it was worth the wait to see if it would return. The luck of it bringing us all the way to Lordran, was just that. Luck."

Oscar nodded but seemed dubious as he was getting more and more prone to be. Was he beginning to see holes in my explanations? Even if he was, I wasn't sure what would happen if he called me out on them. Solaire also nodded, but was much more accepting of my answer.

"I see. Well if we ever get a chance, I would like to see this bird. Such a creature would be magnificent to behold."

Solaire sighed wistfully. Oscar had a response to that wish.

"Just take care to not let it get a hold of you! Otherwise you'll end up in some odd land with a crink in your neck that will never leave!"

So went on the rest of the day, and into the night. We cracked jokes, told stories, and bonded over the bonfire. All things considered, it was the nicest time I had since arriving in Lodran. sometime during the night, I spared a glance to see what the crestfallen warrior was doing, to see if he was still upon seat. He was, but had been watching us with that looked to be a sad smile. When he saw that I noticed him he quickly looked away and busied himself in twiddling his thumbs.

I wondered how many warriors he had watched like this. How many bands of knights who sat at this very bonfire, only to leave and never return. How many of them did he socialize with? How many friends had he made? Yet every single one of them who went to ring the bells, ended up as a hollow. He must have been very lonely, with only a mute firekeeper to keep him company. Thats probably why he was such an ass. Seeing new arrivals must have brought him pain, as he believed he knew our fate.

I knew I had no hope to give him. Not yet. Maybe after ringing the second bell I might be able to convince him. Maybe. Until then he would remain, as always, crestfallen.

* * *

The next day was spent in thought and preparation. We went over everything we had gathered from the merchant, as well as all Solaire had previously acquired. Oscar showed me the repair box we had purchased, and how to use it to form repair powder out of souls. Souls that we had plenty off, after our fight with the gargoyles.

Solaire also let me take my pick from some of the armors he had collected. There was a large diversity, but I didn't see anything I could use effectively. Getting around while wearing my chain mail and carrying my weapons was hard enough. Anything heavier would drag me down, and anything lighter would not offer a level of protection I would be comfortable with. When I told Solaire this, he got a gleam in his eye that I didn't find at all comforting and suggested that I begin training.

It was a good idea, to be certain. With soul reinforcement not existing, the only way I would get stronger would be by the good ol method of blood, sweat, and tears. However Solaire was showing a level of enthusiasm for training that rivaled two green spandex wearing ninjas, and that had me worried as to what his 'training' might entail. I told him I would think about it. He said that it was fine, And that the offer still stood whenever I was ready.

It might seem hypocritical considering I kind of blew off the training, but after thinking for a few minutes I did ask if he could teach me some swordplay, Or at least the basics so I wouldn't be too inept with the blade. Solaire did me one better, and decided to have me spar with Oscar. Apparently while I was considering his offer Oscar had came to him and had asked about how to improve his sword techniques, as Solaire was indeed a knight with experience.

Solaire figured that it would be cost effective to have us duke it out, instead of just teaching us one on one, and then to comment on how we both could do things better. After drawing lines in the dirt with his foot, Soliare got a couple of blunted training weapons from his box. After passing them out, He made Oscar remove Havel's ring stating that Oscar didn't need to get too reliant on it. Oscar wasn't very happy about having to give up his greatest advantage but understood Solaire's reasoning. Once everything was set up an in place we began the enlightening experience of trying to beat the hell out of each with blunt iron.

Oscar and I sparred for a little over an hour, and after every blow struck Solaire would have words for the both of us. How we could have avoided getting hit, and to the one doing the hitting, how to make their hits more effective. For a while, it was just Oscar who managed to score the points. It was after a particularly embarrassing strike that left me mad, that Solaire pulled me to the side and told me just exactly where my issues laid.

"Rufio," He began gently in a tone that reminded me of a school teacher. "Do you know what you're doing wrong?"

I was not particularly happy after having my shit wrecked so absolutely, and I couldn't keep the anger out of my response.

"If I knew what I was fucking doing in the first place then maybe I would know what i'm doing wrong. If I did, shit like that wouldn't be happening. I'm not a fighter, I've never had any training. Unlike mister tin man over there I don't have a fucking clue aside from swish, swish, stab."

Sure I had seen movies and played games, who hadn't? But watching and doing are two completely different things. It was like watching someone dance, and then trying to imitate it by sight alone. Chances are you'll just look like a moron with no idea of how to do what you're trying to do. An accurate comparison considering how well I was doing with my attempts.

Solaire weathered my words without batting an eye.

"You are right, you do not know what you are doing. It is not your sword technique that needs work Rufio, even if it is rather amateur. No, your problem is your style."

Well if that didn't just solve my problems at once. Gee fucking wilikers, thanks mister sunbro. What would I do without you?

"My style? What the fuck do flourishes and shit have to do with me getting my ass kicked?"

Solaire shook his head, and tried to explain it better.

"Not that manner of style Rufio. I speak of the way that you fight, or try to. You are not a knight, you do not wear a full suit of armor yet you move and strike as if you are protected as such. The root of your problem is that you are much too defensive. When we were at the parish, you had no problem with the hollows there, nor did you have a problem with the hollowed Balder Knights. Why do you think that is?"

Too defensive? Excuuuuse me it's not my fault that I didn't want to get hit by a heavy metal rod. Even with the bonfire nearby, that shit hurt. Still, I tried to take his words into consideration and I thought back to the parish. What was different then?

"Back at the parish..."

My words were slow as I tried to figure out the difference.

"Back at the parish...I was angry?"

Solaire nodded.

"For a time you were, yes. That is part of it. What did your anger cause you to be?"

And that's when I got the point that Solaire was trying to make, although in that context the whole idea still confused the fuck out of me.

"My anger made me act recklessly. I was more worried about taking them down, than I was for protecting myself. I was on the offensive."

Solaire smiled, happy that I was finally understanding his message. I sure as hell wasn't 'overjoyed' at the revelation. The advice seemed so stupid that it made me even angrier.

"But that was stupid of me! I could have gotten hurt, or killed!"

He brushed off my complaints with a wave of his hand.

"Yes. Yes you could have. But you didn't, did you? I'm not telling you that you should be completely reckless, for such a path will indeed lead down the quick path to death. But in being as defensive as you were with Oscar, that is also recklessness. You can only block so many strikes with your shield, before one of them breaks through your guard. And you can't rely on your armor to protect you from the following blow. Chainmail is quite effective and protecting from glancing strikes, but a strong thrust will pierce through it and into you."

There was truth in his words, even if I found the concept infuriating. I had to take some deep breaths, and calmed myself down enough to consider following his instruction.

"Fine. What do you suggest I do differently then Solaire?"

I asked, my voice laced with resignation. He ignored the tone, as he had with the rest of my grievances, and told me what to do.

"For starters, move around more. Oscar can move in his armor well enough, but it still weighs him down. You can move faster, and should use that to your advantage. Then, press that advantage. Keep moving, Keep him on the edge, and strike often. Dont commit to most of your strikes as you have done. Instead, leave most of them weak while tossing in some heavier blows every now and again. The feints will make it hard for him to determine whether or not to try and counter, and it will keep him on his toes. Eventually he will slip up and when he does, you'll be ready."

He took a moment to consider my shield and how I was previously using it.

" I would suggest against blocking unless you have to. Instead, dodge. Backstep out of his range, move to the side of his blows. That is how you will find openings. inexperienced enemies tend to overextend their reach, and commit to each strike. Oscar may not be completely inexperienced, but he is overconfident due to his victories over you."

When Solaire finally finished his little lecture, I decided to give his advice a try. Even as stubborn as I could be, I had to admit it he knew what he was talking about. Besides, I seriously could not do any worse that I had been doing. There was a limited amount of time one could eat dirt, before being willing to try a new approach.

We returned to the sparring are, which consisted up two lines drawn in the dirt where I Oscar I stood before each bout. Oscar had been waiting patiently the entire time, and got into his stance when I took my position. Shield up, legs spread, and knees bent. He knew what he was doing. Solaire stood off to the side, and raised his arm. When he dropped it, it was our signal to begin.

The moment Solaire's arm dropped from the air, I was running at a surprised Oscar, who only barely managed to get his shield up in time. My slash had little force behind it, and he raised his blade to return the blow. Before he could counter, I jumped back and out of his reach before starting to circle him. He did the same, and We kept our eyes locked on each other. I was content to wait for him, but everything Solaire had told me advised against that, so I got in close again and started a barrage of mixed strikes.

Oscar used his shield to block them all, and tried to counter again. He pulled his sword in close to his body, and shot it out in a powerfull trust. If I had blocked, it would had knocked me back and stumbled me, leaving me wide open for the follow up. This time however I nimbly stepped to the side and struck out at his outstretched arm. The iron clipped his wrist, and Oscar dropped his sword. It landed with a thump in the dirt.

We both stood there for a moment, unbelieving that I had actually managed to get a point. From where he stood Solaire congratulated me and in a very nice way said 'I told you so.' Oscar didn't say anything, but picked up his sword and took off his helmet. I slightly expected him to be mad, but he wasn't. He had a big grin on his face, and wrapped me in a half hug.

"Good job Rufio! That was much better than before, you actually managed to get the best of me!"

The close proximity and praise made me bashful and I had to look away, Oscar continued talking despite that.

"However, one victory does not win the war! Lets see if you can do it again, and this time ill be ready for you and your new tactics."

In the words of one yellow bear stuffed with fluff, oh bother...

* * *

THe rest of sparring went better than before, at least for me. I was still getting my ass handed to me, but on a less regular basis. Several times I managed to score hits on Oscar, and at one point I had taken him down five times consecutively. That's when Solaire pulled him to the side, and apparently gave him the exact opposite advice that he had given me. Once Oscar returned he was completely on the defense, things were completely back in his favor. Still, my bitterness about loosing had vanished. I was actually having fun with the fights, and even when loosing I found myself laughing.

Near the end of the session, Solaire interjected a bright idea that Oscar and I should use what we had learned to try to take him on. Even though we were worn out, we were still pumped up on endorphins and readily agreed believing our two on one advantage sufficient for victory.

Seven times. Seven separate time we went after Solaire and every single one of them ended up with both of us either kissing the dirt or flat on our asses. I don't even think Solaire was trying very hard either. He rarely used his shield and instead would simply parry our attacks with his blade, before kicking us back. It was embarrassing, and showed the clear difference in skill level. Solaire was a good sport about it, and didn't lord it over us. And in return Oscar and I tried to keep our pride from being damaged too severely.

After the seventh try, Oscar and I were ready to throw in the towel. Solaire didn't argue, but he seemed saddened. He was having fun kicking our asses, and didn't want it to end it seemed.

We all took a brief rest by the bonfire, and then we split up to do our own thing. Oscar went to clean his armor using the pool of water as it had gotten dirty during our bouts. Solaire went off somewhere to go praise the sun. I just kinda chilled while I waited for Lautrec to show up, if he decided to keep his word that is. I didn't think he would flake out on me, but it was still possible.

While I was waiting, I did introduce myself to the two people close at hand that I hadn't yet interacted with. Those two being Anastacia of Astora, and Rickert of Vinheim.

It was Anastacia that I introduced myself to first, and I almost scared the poor girl to death by accident. I felt like I could be more open with her, as she was mute, and couldn't tell the others what I was explaining. She never would be able to either, because I wasn't going to let Lautrec kill her. Still, I felt horrible after I called to her by name from the front of her cell. She immediately began weeping and tried to move as far away from me as possible. It took me forever to convince her that I wasn't from her home village, and that I had no intentions of hurting her.

I tried to tell her what I was planning to do, and tried to convince her that there was some sort of hope for the future. She just nodded to everything I said, which made me furious but I didn't show it, lest it scare her off again. I wasn't mad at her, I was mad at whoever the hell had done this to her. People cruel enough to cut out someones tongue, and treat the person badly enough that they come to believe they deserve it; people who do such things deserve slow agonizing deaths.

Eventually I left her be, because I knew as long as I was talking to her she wouldn't get any solace. I did leave her with the parting advice that soon a man in golden armor would come, and she should not trust a word that he said, and that she should stay as far away from him as possible. All she did was nod again, and I left before I lost my temper. It would have only left a worse impression than I already had

My time with Rickert went better, as he was much more receptive to company. Getting to him was a slight issue, not because there was anything in my way, but because stepping into the ruins of New Londo gave you the creeps like you wouldn't imagine. The handful of wandering hollows didn't help the vibe, even if they were not hostile.

Once I was there though, introductions went smoothly and we had a nice chat about his smithing and the like. I told him of my group, and offered to find a way to get him free. I also mentioned that it was probably safer in Firelink, as he would have that much more distance between him and the ghosts that haunted the city before us. Plus we could always use a smith, especially one versed in the magic arts. To my disappointment He declined, but hesitantly. Citing that while he was locked away not much could get him and turn him hollow.

I stayed for a while and chatted some more, but eventually the atmosphere of the area got to me and I had to leave. I told him I would come back when I could, and that he should consider my offer. He told me that he would think on it, not that there was much else he could do in his predicament, and I left him be. One smooth elevator ride up, and I was back in Firelink.

Still no sign of Lautrec, and the day was almost done. With a resighned sigh I returned to the bonfire, offering Anastacia a smile that was not returned as I passed her. Oscar had finished cleaning his armor, but hadn't put it back on and was sitting bare-chested by the bonfire. Solaire hadn't yet returned from wherever he had run off, and I joined Oscar in the soothing embrace of the estus.

Solaire returned before nightfall, but was much more solemn than we had seen him before. I wasn't sure what he had gone to do, and I didn't ask. A somewhat pious man, he might have just spent the day praying at the altar of sunlight. That night was much quieter than the previous one, and all of us were lost in our own thoughts.

Undead had no basic needs, aside from estus it seemed. We didn't need to eat, we didn't need to drink, and I don't think we even needed to breathe, but when we could, we did all of those things. It made us feel more human, less like abominations. And that hunger in our chests, that craving for humanity, was subdued when we felt as such.

The one thing we couldn't do, was sleep. We could nod off in a fashion, as Seigmeyer was apt to do, but the closest thing we could get to sleep was to get completely absorbed in thought. For as long as I had been in this world, for those days and days in the cell, I had never once fallen asleep.

Yet that night, as I sat there by my companions and stared into the heart of the bonfire, I dreamed. Perhaps it was a waking dream, a hallucination. Perhaps by some manner of strangeness, I actually began to slumber. Whatever the cause may be, I dreamed a vivid, terrible dream.

The dream took me to a place unfamiliar. I saw a house upon a hill, a homely little thing. It was more of a hut really, but it was well taken care of. Its thatch roof was without holes, and its walls seemed quite sturdy. Off to the side, there was a garden full of plants. The whole place was almost picturesque, and I felt like it should have been vaguely comforting. something was off though, and it had me on edge. The undercurrent of dread that always warned me in my nightmares. I began to look around, trying to see what was wrong.

In the distance were plains and hills, obscured by some colorless deep fog. Only barely could I even make out that they existed. When I looked to the sky, I saw nothing. And when I say nothing, I mean nothing. They sky wasn't empty of clouds and the like, there was simply just no sky.

So it wasn't the surroundings that was threatening, that only left the house. I walked to it, pushed open its wooden door, and stepped in. An eerie scene awaited me.

While the outside of the house was together, the inside was a completely different matter. Patches of the floor were missing, leaving holes that lead to who knows where. The furnishments of the house floated in the air, as if they had been thrown but decided not to finish the journey to their new place of rest. In the center of it all, was a man and a little girl.

The man was on the floor, face up, with his hands clasped in the middle of his chest. It looked like the position one would see at a funeral, the final pose of the dead. I couldn't see his head, because the girl was blocking it from view. In her little blue dress, she was kneeling before the body. Her head was in her hands, and she was crying.

Seeing as the little girl was obviously distressed, I went to go comfort her. Before I could get too close though, she stopped crying and turned to look at me. Her face nearly gave me a heart attack.

She had no eyes, only two red pits where they should have been. Down her face flowed rivers of blood that dripped to stain the front of her dress. Her mouth was open, and I could see that her teeth had been replaced with metal slivers that looked razor-sharp. We stared at each other, and then asked me a question. A simple one, with all sorts of implications.

'why?'

I had no idea what she meant. She could have been asking why about so many things, and I wasn't sure which was she meant. Maybe the 'why' encompassed all of it. My mind felt dim, and as foggy as the fields around, and the fear wrought from seeing her didn't help my thought process.

I think I was going to answer her, but my response was prematurely ended by escape from the dream. I was returned to reality by Oscar, who was shaking me gently. I blinked a few time to regain my vision, and saw that he looked quite worried.

"Thank the gods, Rufio are you alright?"

As I had been abruptly removed from a dream, It took a few seconds for me to regain my faculties.

"Uhhh, yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"

He gave me a hard look in the eyes, searching for something before letting go of me.

"About an hour ago you started muttering to yourself. I thought you might have been reciting a prayer, or something of the sort. I became concerned when I realized that you had been repeating yourself over and over. Just the same two words."

So while I had dreamed, I had talked. I suppose sleep talk isn't the most uncommon thing in the world, but now I was curious as to what I had said.

"What were the words Oscar?"

His face still held concern when he told me.

"You were saying i'm sorry' repeatedly. I have no idea what you were apologizing for, or even to who."

I had no idea either, and shrugged. Oscar rolled his eyes, but was visibly relieved that I was alright. I shot him a smile, before readjusting myself to avoid cramps. That's when I noticed me left hand was tightly curled around the uchigatana's handle, and had already cramped up. I pried my finger free of the sword, and massaged that hand until the ache went away.

Seeing the glow in the sky that signaled daylight was soon to come, I went ahead and got up from my place at the bonfire. I wandered over to the pool, and dipped my head into the refreshingly cold water. It was just deep enough for me to hold it there, and while underwater I hear the soft rumblings of a great snoring beast. Kingseeker Frampt was underneath those stones, and would awaken once we rung the second bell.

Frampt I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to deal with. I couldn't ignore him, not if I wanted to use Firelink as a main base. That slithery son of a bitch would definitely be a problem, but if all went well by the time he came about to spout his bullshit, I would have enough allies that he wouldn't be necessary to appease. I didn't anything to do with him, or Kathe. Both of the fuckers were lying, and I had no doubt that they were working together on some level.

Feeling the need to breathe, I pulled my head out of the water and ran my hands through my hair. pushing the darkened red hair back and out of my eyes. The cool drops poured down the back of my neck, and the sensation was invigorating. Not for the first time was I reminded that It was nice to be alive, and I smiled at my reflection in the water. White, relatively straight teeth, and green eyes smiled back in the pre-morning light.

I stayed by the pool until dawn came, content to mess with the water and play with my reflection. It was relaxing, and helped me to organize my thoughts, but came to an end when Oscar came to fetch me. He told me another knight had just shown up, one wearing golden armor with a strange arms motif. After they had talked with him for a bit, Solaire sent Oscar to come get me so I could be introduced. Apparently, Lautrec had finally shown up in Firelink.

We left the pool and joined Solaire by the bonfire, where he was already conversing with Lautrec. The Golden knight's armor glinted in the suns early rays, and in that moment Luatrec looked to represent everything he didn't. He appeared to be the image of the valiant, noble knight on an epic quest, to which Solaire readily related to. Instead of the twisted sick man, which his armor hid like a gaudy mask.

Of course, I knew how to use masks as well, and when we approached the two I acted as If I had absolutely no idea who lautrec was. It wouldn't do for Solaire or Oscar to know of our earlier encounter, not yet at least.

As we approached I whispered to Oscar,

"What kind of knight wears golden armor?

He snickered.

"One who is compensating for his 'shortcomings', no doubt."

He whispered back and I chuckled. If Oscar felt like about Luatrec, I wonder how he would feel once we met Tarkus and saw his massive greatsword...Wait, would we even meet Tarkus?

"Ah, Rufio, glad that you could join us."

Greeted Solaire in a boisterous way as we joined the group. His helmet was off, but his tone keyed me in that he was very chipper this morning. Perhaps the presence of another knight had him in high spirits. That or maybe he got a glimpse of the great big burning fart in the sky. Either was he was happy and it showed. Turning to the side, he offered me a full view of Lautrec, and then gestured in his direction.

"I would like to introduce you to Lautrec the embraced, knight of Carim."

Lautrec offered me a shallow bow, and I could feel his smirk through his helm.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Rufio."

I, in turn offered him my own bow. As well as a shallow smile.

"Likewise Lautrec. What brings you to Lordran?

"Well," Began Lautrec, "As I was telling the good knight Solaire here, I am on my own pilgrimage of sorts. I seek favor from the gods, you see. And I hope that here, in their kingdom that I might find it."

Solaire and Oscar nodded, because the had probably already heard this story. I nodded as well, acting like such an explanation made complete sense. In truth, he could have been completely honest with me and I wouldn't know. His back story was never made particularly clear, only the kind of person he was.

"A worthy goal Lautrec. I'm unsure if Solaire had told you, but we too are on a journey."

I said, hinting to Lautrec that Id want him to come along. His help in the depths would be greatly appreciated.

"Indeed, we were just discussing that before I sent Oscar to fetch you. I spoke to Lautrec about of quest, and he seemed most interested."

Solaire told me, then Lautrec said his piece on the matter.

"Yes, very much so. If such a prophecy does exist, then it must be the will of the gods that we meet here. I would like to accompany you on your quest, for part of the journey at the very least. Perhaps in doing so I will find favor, and maybe repay a few as well."

I could live with that. He obviously meant for me to know that he would consider this a proper repayment for his freedom. Anything after that would be free game. While I was trying to formulate a response that would let me know why he took so long getting to Firelink, Oscar came running from where our stuff lay.  
I hadn't even realized that he had been missing, but something had drawn him away while we were talking. In his hands he clutched a glowing object, and he had a look on his face that was anything but good.

"Oscar whats wrong?"

Asked Solaire, who noted Oscars frantic approach. Lautrec took a step back, and slipped into a slight stance. Unsure if whatever Oscar had was a weapon, and not willing to take the chance. I wasnt worried about a weapon, but I was worried for my friend. When he got closer, he held his hand out to me, and in it was the Book of the Guilty, its pages shining and its faded letter glowing with ethereal light.

A quiet 'what the fuck?' was muttered underneath my breath when I saw the luminescent book. I took it from Oscars hand, and looked to him for answers.

"I have no idea why it started glowing like that. I went to our bags to grab something, and from your pile Rufio I saw the light. I don't know why, but just looking at it made me uneasy. When did you even get that book anyway, and why does it shine like that?"

I was slightly irritated that Oscar had reached through my stuff, but the book trumped that feeling quite immediately.

"Oswald gave it to me, up in the bell tower."

"Oswald? That was the rude pardoners name?"

Solaire inquired. When he heard of its origins Oscar shot the book a dirty look, as if it was contaminated by having anything to do with that man. When Lautrec heard the name, he dropped his stance and moved closer. Perhaps he had some knowledge of the pardoner, as they did hail from the same land and Lautrec was a hell of a sinner.

"Yeah, he told me once you two stepped outside and gave me this. It supposedly was a gift from Velka, but when I opened it then the pages were blank."

I cracked the book open, and the glowing immediately stopped. The pages were still blank, but not for long. As if it was seeping up from the page below the one we were on, blood rose to the surface. It bled though the paper, and the deep red blotches began to form words and letters.

All of us were astounded and freaked out by such an event. All three of the knights muttered the name of some god or another, but there was only one god who was responsible for what I was seeing. Velka was sending me some kind of message, for the first word revealed itself to be 'Rufio' once completed.  
A brief spike of panic went through my heart at seeing my name placed in the book of the guilty. Was Velka warning me that I had sinned, and that the Darkmoons were coming? How the fuck would that even work, were there even actual Phantoms now?

Brief panic gave way to confusion, and then to bemused anger. As the blood words on the page began to take shape, I noticed a pattern to them. Comma's formed stanzas, and the completed thing looked not unlike a poem, and read the same way. Read that way to me at least, because when I questioned the others they seemed to be unable to read it. I had no idea why, as it appeared to me to be in perfect English. Maybe Velka only meant for me to able to read it, I don't know. The poem read as thus.

Rufio,

Thou must go deep below

Two still live that thou do know

Soon must be thine meeting

Lest their husks be thine greeting

Incessant gluttony thou must slay

Time is thin, thou hath one day

If not so, thy key is gone

and death will come to thee at dawn

Children of Izalith thou must fear

They shall devour what thou holds dear

Now go, flee, to thine task at hand

prove to me the worth of man

It was a poem. Short, and rather uncomplicated, it offered a strange mix of information. I suppose it was meant to be riddle like, but the meaning it carried was clear as day. Thus my confusion didn't arise from what Velka was saying, it arose from why the fuck did gods have to be so insufferable? She could have easily just spat out the words in simple clear prose, there was no need for the poetry. Bitch.

My issues with complicated methods of communicating information aside, I needed to make sure I was understanding her message. Just because some things might have been obvious on the surface, that didnt mean there wasn't a deeper meaning.

'Deep below' obviously meant the depths, or blighttown, or the catacombs or ash lake or any number of fucking places. But the two she was speaking of gave me a better idea. It was either the Spider Sisters in blighttown, or Griggs and Laurentius near the depths. I wanted to lean for the sisters because of the 'children of Izalith', but the magic tutors were the better bet. I didnt think that the sisters could go hollow, and the 'incessant gluttony' was kind of an easy one.

So Griggs and Laurentius were still alive and kicking in the depths, at least for a time. But they wouldn't last, as both of them were in danger. I had a day, but was that a day to save them or a day to get the blighttown key? And for that matter, the fuck did she mean by 'death at dawn'? I did not like the sound of it, not in the least.

The last two lines almost sounded mocking to me, which made plenty of sense. Velka gave me a warning, and a threat in a clichéd format. Despite her issues with the other gods, she was still a godess and likely had a low opinion of humans, with us being sinful creatures and all.

Having gotten what I hoped was the gist of what was written, I closed the book shut. It didn't start glowing again, because the message had been given. Everyone was watching me, all wondering what the book had said. I wasn't sure what to say to them, but time was of the essence. I would have to make my point quickly.

"Alright...so since none of you could read the message ill give you the cliffs notes."

"Cliffs notes?" Asked Solaire, "What are 'cliffs notes'?"

I wanted to smack myself, I had to remember not to use euphemisms here.

"Sorry, it was a figure of speech from my homeland. It means the important parts. There are people still alive in the sewers beneath the burg that need our help. We need to get to them as soon as possible."

"Not that i'm against helping those who are in need,"

Interjected Oscar,

"But shouldn't we focus on the task at hand? We need to get to blighttown and the second bell! Shouldn't that come first?"

I gave Oscar an incredulous look , but I wasn't fully surprised. Oscar wasn't too keen on dealing with other people, and was ready to move on to the next bell. Lautrec supported me on the matter, as he owed me.

"Actually, Oscar was it? Blighttown can be accessed from those sewers, but only if one had the key. That key, from what I know, was swallowed by a monstrous creature that lives in those sewers, as well as the keys previous owner."

I always did wonder why the gaping dragon had eaten the key, now I knew.

"Lautrec is correct, or at least, from what i've gathered. The key itself is in danger. We apparently have one day, before it is digested in the stomach of that beast."

Those were the two important bits at least. I didn't think it was necessary to fill them in on the handful of other pieces of info. I had stated the task, the deadline, and now I had given them the motivation. We could do this.

"Well if the gods have decreed that this should be our path, so be it. Lets gather our belongings and get moving. If we have but one day, we should waste no time."

Said Solaire, taking charge. On his word we began to get shit together.

Apparently Luatrec already knew a way to get to the lower burg. He had the key on him that opened the door on the helkite bridge, and after we got our stuff together we let him take the lead. Oscar ended up carrying the box on his back again, but was fine with it as it meant he got to use Havel's ring which he was becoming quite fond of.

I too, ended up with my own burden. As I was unwilling to have my handful of things placed into that abyss, I was given a small pack that I could wear over one shoulder. In it I placed the drake scale, the sunlight medal, the book of the guilty, and that peculiar doll. I don't know why I still had it, I just remembered that it was important and that I would figure it our later.

Some of the hollows in the parish had resurrected, the ones that could at least. Two Balder knights greeted us as we entered the church, but they stood no chance against our combined might. Luatrec showed us a glimpse of his skills, as his Shotels deftly swung around the Balder's shield to score fatal blows. Solaire took care of the other with a parry and riposte.

The body of the Berenike knight was gone, and there were much less hollows in the area than the first time we had arrived. The ones missing were the ones who had been too damaged to come back, but I had no idea where the bodies had gone. Unless the other hollows had tossed them over the edge and into Darkroot, they had just vanished. It made me think of how Oscar and I found no bodies in the burg. Perhaps it hadn't been Havel or the Helkite taking them away.

Since nothing was left that could give us any sort of challenge our time through the parish was a breeze. The few hollows able to stand were quickly annihilated, and the ones who couldn't were ignored. Soon we reached the broken bonfire by the sunlight altar, and the helkite bridge.

The bridge was clear, and we crossed it unmolested. Solaire seemed to want to stop by his altar, but knowing time was of the essence pushed that desire to the side. Once we had crossed, Lautrec unlocked the door on the burg side of the bridge, and we began the long climb down the ladder to the lower burg. Again, fuck ladders.

Unlike the upper burg, the lower burg was mostly intact. Well, as intact as it was in the game. There were still fucked up buildings, and a handful of fires, but not the absolute destruction that had been done above, and any damage visible could be contributed to the fallen rubble from the torn up upper burg.  
Just Like the first time we stalked through the burg, it was void of hollows. There were obvious signs of struggle to be found, same as up above. Yet still, there were no bodies at all. Havel had survived, so I wondered if it was he that had eliminated the hollows. or perhaps it had been the Capra demon. Or maybe the two had fought each other and I would not have to deal with either of them ever again. Too many maybes.

As we came to the wide area with the bonfire, and I mean a real bonfire not the estus spewing wonder fountain that I was beginning to grow strange and strong feelings for. No, I was talking about a large burning...pile of corpses.

I got a bit queasy looking at it, and the smell didn't help. There was no personal or empathetic connection with the bodies, They looked hollow enough. It was just the sheer volume of them and their burning status that made me sick. Solaire and Lautrec didn't seem to be bothered by it, both being veteran knights. Oscar was on my level, but he had an easy solution. He took a cloth from his pocket and lifted his visor to slip it in. Having his own filter, he no longer had issues. I, having no helmet of which to do so, had to grimace and bare it.

As we trudged along, we passed by many a house but one in particular caught my eye. Most either had their doors locked and barricaded, or smashed to pieces. This one was unique, as its door bore interesting marks. The edges around the door frame were seared black, and the handful of wood shards left were charcoal.

It seemed as if it had been blasted open by a firebomb or something of the like. While I knew we had to hurry, my curiosity got the best of me and I had to investigate. We only stopped for a moment, but I did find something interesting as I searched the interior. An old length of oak that reached up to my chest when stood on the tip, As well as a simple black hat. The oak sent a shiver up my arm when I picked it up, and I decided to take both it and the hat with me. I think I had an idea of just who had inhabited the house, and who the items had belonged too.

The lower burg was just as big as the upper burg, and while Lautrec and I knew the path it was still taking a while to make our way through. The entire time though, something was bothering me. If the hollows were gone, and the Taurus demon was gone, would the Capra demon be gone as well? It was possible, but if so that brought up a frightening question. If the demons did leave, where did they go to?

Hopefully back to Izalith where they belonged, but I doubted I would be that fortunate.

Eventually we came to the lair of the Capra demon, minus the Capra demon. I knew that room well, with its short staircase and lush grass. This place had been the bane of many a player, as its boss and dogs were quite difficult to beat if you were inexperienced. I felt nostalgic while looking at it. Good times. Good times.

We didn't stop to look for the key, and kept a move on. The door to the depths might be a problem, but with out joint effort I believed that we could break the lock. If all else failed, we still had plenty of firebombs and enough of those puppies going off at once was sure to open just about any door we wanted.  
It turned out that those firebombs wouldn't be needed. The door to the depths wasnt broken down, the entire wall was. Bricks were scattered about, mostly on the interior. The iron door that would have been our obstacle was dented and had been cast aside. something had beaten us to the punch, and had busted into the depths. I would have thought it to be Havel, but with one arm such devastation would be too much for him to make. Plus, he had no need of such a big hole. This thing was huge.

Lautrec must have only heard about the key and the path to blighttown, as I was the only one surprised by the damages done to the wall. This was not right. Warning bells were going off in my head like Notre fucking Dame. something was in their that shouldn't be, and we were unknowingly following its footsteps.  
Maybe I should have, but I didn't tell my companions of my fear. While the book offered me an excuse for my foreknowledge, it wasn't a picture book and they would wonder how I would know that the depths door looked wrong. In my stomach, a pit had began to form. I ignored it, and we stepped into the belly of the beast.

* * *

Oh my god I fucked up. I fucked up big time. I should have told them something was off, I shouldn't have decided to go first. I was inches away from the chiseled skull of the Taurus Demon, which was holding me tightly in one of its massive claws. It burning yellow eyes bored deep into whatever courage I had, and found it wanting. There was hunger in those eyes, which was demonstrated as the Taurus demon opened its horrendous mouth, and leaned in to bite my head clean off my torso.

As it pulled me closer to devour me, I could hear the others fighting off the Capra Demon. Its wild swings large blades keeping everyone on their toes. I head Oscar screaming my name, which was kind of nice. I guess when I died again, this time I would be missed. And I would be dying rather soon, as the Capra demon was not letting them get close enough to free me. Solaire didn't even have time to ready a bolt, and he could conjur those things fast. It seemed that this would be the end of the magnificent Rufio, dark reign failed before it even began.

I do have to say that even taking in account the fact we were in a sewer, the demons breath was the rankest thing I had ever smelled, and would likely be the last thing I ever did smell. Its molars were cracked and chipped, and dripped with disgusting saliva almost pink in color. I braced for impact, feeling the hot exhale before the bite.

Instead of the warm wet heat of the Demons inner mouth and the painful crunch of my bones being munched, I was hit with a much more intense heat from the side. My ribs were scorched, and I could feel molten metal my armor partially melted. I cried out in pain, and the demon dropped me to the floor. When I landed on my ass I could see that its hand was burned down to the bone, with several fingers falling free from of the melting flesh. I would have shouted something witty if I wasn't in excruciating pain and handn't almost died.

The Taurus demon roared in anguish, and turned its shoulder to take the full brunt of a second attack. A fireball flew through the air and slammed into the flesh. It ignited the hair, and melted the skin like wax. It began to back away from where I was on the floor, doing its best to avoid more fire and pain.

"Griggs help me get him, my fire orb nicked him when It hit the demons hand!"

I recognized the accent. In my world it had been Australian but here it marked ones home of origin as the great swamp. I was picked up my shoulders and drug away from the still retreating Taurus demon. In front of me stepped a man in a tattered hood and thick clothes. His hand was bathed in fire, and with a thrust of his palm a burst of flame lashed out to strike the demon.

It was Laurentius, and the man who was dragging me must have been Griggs. They had saved my life. I turned my head to the side, trying to get a glimpse of the battle raging with the Capra demon and my friends plus one. Luatrec, Oscar, and Solaire were managing to gain the advantage. Attacking from every side, the moment its attention was diverted, one of them would strike. It dodged or blocked most of the hits, but it was now on the defensive.

Somehow during the Capra Demons dance of death, it had time to single me out and take not of the situation its ally was in. Lautrec was the one who blocked it off, and with a mighty swing of both of its machetes it knocked Lautrec to the side and sprinted to the Taurus Demon and Laurentius.

"LOOK OUT!"

Shouted Griggs, and Laurentius tossed himself to the side. Just in time to avoid the heavy blow that would have killed him outright. Now that their attention wasn't focused on surviving an insanely powerful opponent, my companions rushed to my side and relived Griggs of his burden. Oscar and Solaire each took and arm, while Lautrec stood guard with his Shotels. Seeing that he had missed his easy opportunity, the Capra demon began to slowly back away to regroup with the Taurus.

Our group squared off against the duo, and it seemed that the combat was about to resume. The Capra demon brandished it machetes, and the Taurus gripped it great axe with its good hand. They were going to come at us the moment we showed any sort of weakness, and we would be at a disadvantage. Suprise had saved my life with the fireball, and Laurentius' pyromancy would indeed be a great boon. But the room we were in wasn't the largest, and there was very little room to get out of the way if both monstrosities decided to come at us at the same time.

"Hey, we need to go, like now. Those demons, we can't fight them here it would be suicide. There is a safe passage that leads away, you need to follow us."

It seemed that Laurentius and Griggs had a different Idea, as neither of them seemed to keen on fighting the demons along side us. I was too busy trying not to scream, because one side of me was currently well done. I wasn't sure if Oscar and the others agreed with them or not, but I found myself being drug even further from the demons.

When they saw that we were leaving, the Taurus and Capra demons were about to give chase. But while Griggs showed us the way, Laurentius began to throw his fireballs in their general direction. It kept them at bay long enough for us to be drawn down a narrow hallway to small for either demon, and with walls too thick to be busted through. We had gotten away.

* * *

AAAAAAAAND DONE! Considering the long wait, im sorry that the chapter wasnt longer but it be what it be. I was going to continue further in, but there wasn't going to be a good stopping point and the events that follow need their own chapter.

Anyway yall know the drill. Leave a review of what you thought of the chapter, predictions for the future, and constructive criticism on how I can improve.

Next time on Soul of a Hero:

No way to escape, trapped like rats in a maze. A strange fellow obsessed with curiosities lends his aid, in return for a gift. A ring with history is coveted. A plan to fight the demons goes awry, and their greatest battle so far will test their mettle.

Chapter Six: Dragon King Greataxe

Thanks for reading everyone, Ill see you next chapter.

P.s. whats your new favorite covenant from ds2? So far im loving the Rat King Covenant, all dem lockstones.


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